Maharashtra: Death toll in Raigad landslide rises to 25

According to an official, three more bodies were discovered on Saturday from the debris in the landslide-affected Irshalwadi village in Maharashtra’s Raigad district, bringing the total number of casualties to 25. He claims that a man and two ladies are among the dead.

“Bodies of two women and a man were recovered from the landslide site in Irshalwadi on Saturday,” an official of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) said.

With this, the number of people killed in the landslip tragedy has increased to 25, he added, adding that search and rescue efforts are still ongoing because 83 people have not yet been found.

The deceased women were identified as 32-year-old Mahi Madhu Tirkat, Aashi Pandurang (around 50 years). The male deceased was identified as Kishan Tirkat, 27, officials said.

At the landslip site, which is situated in a hilly area, teams from the NDRF and other government organisations continued their search and rescue effort in the morning. The search operation is in its third day.

Irshalwadi, a tribal village situated on a hillside in the coastal district, around 80 kilometres from Mumbai, was struck by the enormous landslip on Wednesday night. Of the village’s 48 homes, at least 17 were wholly or partially buried by the landslip debris.

Since there is no pucca road in the village, which is a popular trekking destination and is overseen by Irshalgad fort, earth movers and excavators could not be moved easily, and the rescue operation is being conducted manually, officials added.