26 killed in Nepal landslides

A landslide triggered by torrential rain killed 15 people in western Nepal and the death toll could rise, the home ministry said today.

The authorities said that 20 people were killed and 36 have gone missing in Kaski district after landslides triggered by incessant rainfall on Wednesday night.

The landslides struck the villages near the resort town of Pokhara, 125 km (77 miles) west of Kathmandu shortly after midnight.

A total of 27 houses were also buried in the district, a police official said.

“Twenty-eight people are missing in Lumley”. “More teams are trying to reach the affected villages by removing landslides that have affected the Pokhara-Baglung highway”.

So far at least 16 people are reported dead from the slides, which are somewhat common in Nepal’s mountainous regions during the monsoon months.

The weather on Thursday morning was clear but the landslides had damaged the connecting road to the hamlet of Lumle, forcing the rescuers to walk for several hours, Godar said.