The death toll from a landslide in India’s western state of Maharashtra has risen to 22 as efforts to potentially save dozens of people still trapped under debris continue.
The landslide hit on Thursday with local reports suggesting that a number of the 50 houses in Irshalwadi village were flattened under the mud.
Six more bodies were pulled from under layers of mud on Friday, bringing the toll from the incident to 22.
The village is home to at least 225 people, and while around 80 of them managed to escape, more than 100 people are missing according to local reports.
The landslide hit early in the morning as many of those affected were asleep.
Rescue operations were hampered by incessant rain, poor visibility and hilly terrain.
Those conditions made it impossible to move heavy machinery to the site, slowing down work, Reuters reported citing officials.
There are also fears of further landslides in the area as the heavy rains continue, especially from a fort at a higher elevation.
“The foundations of the fort have been weakened by the rain and the landslide, so we are also monitoring that as we work to ensure that more lives are not lost in the event of another incident,” Atul Karwal, director general of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) told Reuters.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde has announced compensation payments of Rs500,000 (£4,700) to the families of those who died in the landslide.
India’s meteorological department has announced a red alert for the western Indian states of Maharashtra, Goa and Gujarat with heavy to very heavy rainfall likely on Sunday.
Record rainfall in northern India has claimed more than 100 lives, collapsing roads and collapsing homes in the past two weeks.
