Shimla: In a heart-wrenching incident that has cast a pall over the scenic hills of Himachal Pradesh, a private bus carrying unsuspecting passengers was engulfed by a massive landslide near Bilaspur, claiming several lives and leaving many trapped under tonnes of earth and rock.
The tragedy unfolded on a rain-slicked stretch of road, where nature’s fury turned a routine journey into a nightmare.
Eyewitnesses described a scene of sheer horror as the hillside gave way without warning, sending a torrent of mud, boulders, and debris cascading onto the moving bus. A local resident who rushed to the scene recounted that it happened in seconds. The earth swallowed the bus alive.
Preliminary reports indicate at least a dozen passengers have perished, with rescuers battling slippery terrain and relentless drizzle to dig out survivors buried beneath the rubble. The exact toll remains unclear, as emergency teams, including NDRF personnel, work round-the-clock amid fears of further slides.
The accident highlights the perils of Himachal’s fragile mountain roads, especially during the monsoon season’s tail end. Authorities have suspended traffic on the affected route, urging commuters to exercise caution. Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu expressed profound grief, announcing immediate ex-gratia payments to the kin of the deceased and vowing a probe into the landslide’s causes.
As dawn breaks over the devastated site, the focus remains on saving lives. This calamity serves as a potent illustration of the urgent need for bolstered infrastructure and early warning systems in the region’s vulnerable terrains.