NEW DELHI, July 21 (Xinhua) -- The death toll rose to 22 in the landslide that struck a village on a hilltop in India's western state of Maharashtra, after six more bodies were retrieved from under the debris on Friday, a local police official confirmed.
"The search and rescue operation was stopped on Friday at 18:30 local time and will resume tomorrow morning. Only six dead bodies could be retrieved today. It's a difficult terrain, hence the search operation is being carried out physically with hands or with the help of canines," he said.
As many as four teams of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) were engaged in the search and rescue operation. local villagers also helped in digging the debris at the right spots to retrieve the bodies.
Nearly 100 people went missing after the natural disaster struck the Irshalwadi village. Incessant rains, bad weather and difficult terrain have hampered the search and rescue operation, as heavy machinery could not be lifted up to the site of the mishap.
According to local media reports, there were around 210 people inside the village when the landslide hit on Wednesday night. While around 70 people escaped unhurt, 21 were rescued alive on Thursday from under the debris. Thereafter 22 bodies, including six retrieved Friday, have been recovered so far.
Earlier on Friday, a senior NDRF official said the affected area was around 200 x 250 meters and the help of local survivors was being taken in retrieving the bodies from under the rubble. According to him, much manpower was needed for carrying out the search and rescue operation as it was a difficult terrain. ■
