NEW DELHI—A landslide triggered by torrential rains tore through a village in western India on Wednesday, killing at least 10 people and leaving an estimated 150 others trapped under mud and debris, authorities said.
More than 40 houses were buried when a section of hill crashed down on the village of Malin near the city of Pune at around 5 a.m. Many residents, asleep at the time, were believed entombed, rescuers said.
Suresh Jadhav, a local magistrate, said the death toll is likely to rise as many of the houses were beneath a layer of mud 12 feet to 15 feet deep. That and continuing heavy rains slowed efforts by emergency workers, he said.
Rescuers with shovels and earthmoving equipment found three survivors Wednesday afternoon, Mr. Jadhav said.
An official of India’s National Disaster Response Force said seven teams of 42 rescue workers each were on their way to the site. About 200 volunteers were already at the scene, Mr. Jadhav said.
“The movement is slow as there is only one road to reach the village. The road is muddy and damaged, and it is raining nonstop,” said Sandeep Rai Rathore, inspector general of the National Disaster Response Force.
Mr. Rathore said more landslides were feared in neighboring villages.
Landslides and floods are a common occurrence in some parts of India during the monsoon season, which runs from June until September.
Earlier this month, at least 11 people were killed after a 20-foot-high brick wall collapsed on construction workers’ shelters after heavy rain in southern India’s Tamil Nadu state.
More than 800 people died and several thousand remain missing and presumed dead after floods and landslides hit the northern state of Uttarakhand in June last year
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