Kinnaur landslide: Toll rises to 13 as several still feared to be trapped in debris; rescue ops underway

Three more bodies were recovered from the landslide site in Himachal Pradesh’s Kinnaur district where the search and rescue operation resumed early on Thursday, raising the death toll to 13, officials said. Three bodies were recovered from the Himachal Road Transport Corporation (HRTC) bus, which, along with other vehicles, was buried under the debris, State Disaster Management Director Sudesh Kumar Mokhta said. The bus was found in a badly damaged condition, he added. Another vehicle, a Bolero, still lies buried under the rubble. Himachal Pradesh chief minister Jairam Thakur told _ ANI. “_We still don’t know the total number of passengers who were travelling on the bus. The bus is still buried under debris. If the weather permits, Army will deploy its chopper for the rescue operation. I plan to visit the landslide site in Kinnaur today.” The rescue work, being carried out jointly by the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) and the members of local police and home guards, resumed at 6 am, Mokhta said. The authorities had suspended the operation on Wednesday at around 10 pm. The HRTC bus, which had been on its way from Reckong Peo to Haridwar via Shimla, was hit by the boulders after a landslide around Wednesday noon near Chaura village on national highway-5 in Nigulsari area of Nichar tehsil. Ten bodies were recovered on Wednesday, while 13 others were rescued with injuries. Several others are still feared buried under the debris. Eight of the dead were found trapped in a Tata Sumo taxi during the search and rescue operation on Wednesday. With inputs from PTI