TORKHAM: Massive landslide during a thunder and lightning storm on the main Pak- Afghan border area of Khyber Pass in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, buried more than 20 trucks on Tuesday, killing at least two people, with dozens more feared trapped, officials said.
Two Afghan citizens had been killed in the landslide and authorities were trying to recover the bodies, said Deputy Commissioner of the Khyber district, Abdul Nasir Khan, while talking to media.
Separately, Rescue 1122 spokesperson Bilal Faizi said eight injured persons had been provided first aid care, while four had been moved to the hospital.
Faizi further said a fire had broken out immediately after the landslide as drivers were cooking meals for sehri on gas stoves. “The blaze is now under control”.
He said heavy machinery including 12 ambulances, four fire vehicles, three recovery vehicles and three heavy excavators had been deployed at the site as the wreckage was extensive.
According to a statement issued by the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Disaster Management Authority, the landslide took place on the main route connecting the Pakistan-Afghanistan Torkham border at 2:30am today.
Resultantly, about 15 to 20 cargo vehicles were suppressed under the landslide, it said, adding that teams from Khyber, Peshawar, Nowshera, Charsadda and Mardan were participating in the ongoing rescue operation.
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