Himachal: Massive portion of hill swept away after landslide in Sirmaur

Shimla, Sep 6 (PTI) A landslide hit Himachal's Sirmaur on Saturday morning, sweeping away 200 metres of area from a hill, officials said.

The incident occurred in Noradhar's Chokker village, endangering five houses. However, the five people present on the hillside are safe, they added.

The cause of the landslide could not be ascertained, but locals claim it was due to the bursting of an underground water source.

Videos purportedly showing the gushing waters carrying huge mounds of debris, with alarmed locals crying, asking people to stay away from the site, have gone viral on the internet.

A total of 133 major landslides, 95 flash floods, and 45 cloudbursts have ravaged parts of the state since the onset of monsoon on June 20.

The local MeT Station has predicted moderate rain across the state for the next six days and issued a yellow alert for heavy rains, thunderstorms, and lightning in Una and Bilaspur districts, as well as thunderstorms and lightning at isolated places in Shimla, Solan, and Sirmaur districts on Saturday.

Light to moderate rainfall is expected at a few places from September 7 to 12, with one or two spells of heavy rain across isolated locations on Saturday, the MeT station said.

Himachal Pradesh recorded an average rainfall of 943.2 mm during the ongoing monsoon from June 1 to September 6 against the normal rainfall of 648.1 mm, an excess of 46 per cent. PTI BPL ANM ANM MPL MPL