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Monsoon rains caused a severe landslide in a village in Raigad district. There are at least 50 missing.
Published on 07/23/2023 08:30
Reading time: 1 min
Rescuers search for victims at the site of a landslide in Raigad district, Maharashtra state, on July 22, 2023 in India. (India National Disaster Relief / AFP)
The death toll from a massive landslide in the state of Maharashtra in central-west India rose to 27 on Sunday, July 23. At least 50 people are also missing, according to authorities. On Thursday, monsoon rains triggered a landslide in a village in Raigad district, a hilly and forested area about 100 kilometers from Mumbai.
“We have counted 27 bodies so far and between 50 and 60 people are still missing, but there are many problems with the rescue work at the scene,” local official Yogesh Mhase told AFP. A previous report reported at least 16 dead.
The effects of climate change
Yogesh Mhase said the remote hamlet affected by the tragedy is about five kilometers from the nearest road. “No heavy equipment can reach this site, we only have small machines and most of the work has to be done manually,” he explained. The heavy rains that have not stopped in the region also make the operation considerably more difficult. He says he is not optimistic about the likelihood of finding survivors on the fourth day of the ongoing rescue operation.
Floods and landslides have killed dozens of people across the country since the monsoon began in India in early June. Experts assume that climate change will increase the number of extreme weather events worldwide.
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