Death toll in landslide at Maharashtra village climbs to 26; search ops on

The massive landslide hit Irshalwadi, a tribal village located on a hill slope in the coastal district, around 80km from Mumbai, on Wednesday night.

NDRF personnel during a search and rescue operation after a landslide at Irshalwadi village in Raigad district. Credit: PTI Photo

Five more bodies were recovered on Saturday taking the death toll in the Irshalwadi hill landslide tragedy to 26.

The search and rescue operations to locate 100-odd villagers are underway even as their chances of survival are bleak.

Meanwhile, help continued to pour in for the resettlement and rehabilitation of the survivors by political parties and social organisations.

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Shiv Sena (UBT) head and former Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, accompanied by senior party leaders like Leader of Opposition (Council) Ambadas Danve, Anil Parab, Bhaskar Jadhav, Milind Narvekar and others, visited the Panchayatan Temple where over a hundred survivors are temporarily sheltered.

The deceased whose bodies were recovered were identified as Mahi Madhu Tirkad (32), Aashi Pandurang (50), Bharati Madhu Bhutabra (18) and Kishan Tirkad (27).

Teams of the NDRF and other government agencies resumed their search and rescue operation at the landslide site, located in hilly terrain in Khalapur tehsil of Raigad district.