The death toll from the impact of Cyclone Remal in Meghalaya has gone up to five.
After loss of one life in a recent house collapse in Sutnga under East Jaintia Hills, the State today saw another tragic incident when four persons including three from the same family were buried alive by landslide in East Khasi Hills.
The incident occurred in the wee hours of today at Nongpriang, a village under Sohra Civil Sub-Division.
As a result of heavy rainfall, the massive landslide that flowed from the upper reaches of the village buried two houses in the village.
Rescue teams from Sohra who included police, fire service personnel and State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) arrived in the village after trekking down the flight of stairs for around two hours.
The teams had to carry out the rescue operations with their small tools as no machinery could be brought since the village is not connected by road.
Later, the rescue teams were able to pull out the body of one Phisar Nongrum who lives in one of the houses.
Efforts were also made to locate three persons from the same family who were buried by mudslide in another house.
The three missing persons are identified as Kynmaw Synnai (70), his wife Denti Riahtam (60), and son Lumlang Riahtam (16).
In the evening, another body was located under a huge rock but it could not be pulled out due to the weight of the rock.
Meanwhile, Chief Minister Conrad Sangma has directed immediate release of ex-gratia to the affected family.
In the nearby Khatarshnong area, more than 20 villages have been affected by the storm and heavy rainfall. Many houses have been destroyed. The road leading to the affected villages have been totally damaged.
The affected villages are also living in darkness as electricity supply was snapped due to electric poles getting uprooted by the storm.
During the last few days, the cyclone wreaked havoc in Meghalaya. Around 5,619 people have been affected in 271 villages and 910 houses were damaged.
A total of Rs 19.85 crore has been disbursed for immediate relief.
