Five-storeyed building collapses in Shimla, cloudburst in Rampur

Jun 30, 2025 03:03 PM IST

No casualty as building had been evacuated hours before incident in Bhattakuffar area of Shimla town. Orange alert in several districts as rain continues to pound hill state.

Hours after it was evacuated when cracks started appearing, a five-storeyed residential building collapsed in the Bhattakuffar area of Shimla as heavy rain continued to pound Himachal Pradesh on Monday, officials said.

The site where the five-storeyed residential building collapsed in the Bhattakuffar area of Shimla as heavy rain continued to pound Himachal Pradesh on Monday. (Deepak Sansta/HT)

Though there was no casualty in the incident that occurred in Mathu Colony situated on the road leading to Chamyana Super Specialty Hospital, it triggered panic as residents of nearby buildings. Preliminary reports suggest that cracks developed due to the ongoing four-lane road construction in the area, which could have weakened the foundation of the building. The district authorities are now assessing the damage and the stability of surrounding structures.

Trade at the Bhattakuffar Fruit Mandi was disrupted since Sunday as stones rolled down the hill. The mandi was damaged in a landslide in 2020, but it has not been restored fully so far. Landslides were also reported in Bothwell Estate near Sanjauli, Panthaghati, Khalini, Krishna Nagar, Bharari, Chakkar and Tutikandi areas of Shimla. However, no loss of life was reported.

The incident brought back memories of the monsoon fury Shimla witnessed on August 14, 2023, when heavy rain triggered a landslide in the Summer Hill area, bringing down a temple that led to the death of 20 people.

A cloudburst was reported at Sikaseri village in Rampur tehsil of Shimla district. Officials said no loss of life was reported.

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has sounded an orange alert of heavy to very heavy rain in Una, Bilaspur, Kangra, Mandi, Sirmaur and Solan districts on Monday. Heavy rain has been forecast at isolated places in Hamirpur, Shimla and Kullu districts. From July 1 to 3, several districts of the state will continue to remain under yellow alert of rainfall.

Schools were closed in Kangra, Mandi and Sirmaur districts as a precautionary measure.

State revenue minister Jagat Singh Negi said 34 people have lost their lives in the state since June 20 in rain-related incidents and accidents triggered by the adverse weather.