Sirmaur under siege: Heavy rain leads to landslides, disrupts lives

Sirmaur district faced widespread disruption today as heavy rainfall triggered landslides, damaged property and blocked multiple roads, severely affecting connectivity in several subdivisions.

According to official reports, 66 roads across the district were closed to traffic, with restoration work expected to reopen 37 by the end of the day and the remaining 29 tomorrow. While all national highways in the district remained open, 187 distribution transformers (DTRs) in Rajgarh were disrupted, temporarily affecting power supply.

Water supply was also hit in multiple areas, with 33 schemes disrupted — including two in Paonta Sahib, 27 in Nohradhar and four in Rajgarh — though all were temporarily restored. No fire incidents were reported.

A major incident occurred in Rajgarh subdivision, where a landslide damaged a cowshed, swept away a parked car and killed four cattle. The same area reported damage to both kutcha and pucca houses, with estimated private property losses running into lakhs of rupees. Heavy rains also led to several houses being partially or fully damaged in different parts of the district, including Renuka, Dhar Pajera and Tatiyana.

The narrow and rain-weakened rural roads suffered the brunt of the damage, with Rajgarh subdivision alone recording 24 road closures, followed by Pachhad with 15, Nahan with 13, Sangrah with 12 and Paonta Sahib with four. Subdivisions Kaffota and Shillai reported no road blockages.

Officials have warned that overloaded apple-laden trucks using fragile rural roads pose a higher risk during the monsoon. Restoration teams from the Public Works Department, power utilities and water supply divisions are working in coordination to clear debris, repair infrastructure, and restore essential services across affected areas.

Despite the scale of the damage, no human casualties were reported in Sirmaur. Authorities have urged residents to remain alert, avoid unnecessary travel on vulnerable stretches, and report any incidents to local disaster management teams immediately.