Five missing after landslide in Mt. Annapurna South

Kathmandu February 23- At least five persons have gone out of contact after a dry landslide struck the base of Mt Annapurna South at Narchyang VDC – 1 on Monday night. Tak Bahadur Thajali, Sher Bahadur Thajali, Dil Bahadur Thajali, of Lek Gaun in Narchyang – 5 and Hukum Pun of ward no 6 of the same locality and Tar Bahadur Phagami of ward no 4 have gone missing. 

The landslide continuing since midnight has released a huge cloud of dust in its wake impacting the general life in Narchyang, Dana, Bhurung, Tatopani, Shik, Ghar and Dowa VDCs. The haze has made travelling difficult in the area. The rescue teams from Nepal Army and Nepal Police have not yet reached the incident site owing to difficulty in access, said Deputy Superintendent of Police, Bishworaj Khadka. 

The five persons had headed to a jungle at the base of the Annapurna South to forage for bamboo on Monday afternoon. The attempts to make contact on their mobile phones have failed and their search by locals and security personnel, and study on the landslide rendered difficult, according to DSP Khadka.