ANKARA

The death toll after a landslide hit a bus in India’s Himachal Pradesh state has reached 18, officials said Tuesday.

Anirudh Singh, a state minister who confirmed the new death toll from the accident in the Bilaspur district, said on the US social media company, X, that authorities are “ensuring all possible support in the ongoing relief and rescue operations.”

A statement earlier from the chief minister’s office said that “there is apprehension that several others may be trapped under the debris.”

It said a rescue operation is "continuing at a war footing level" and “officials have been instructed to deploy the entire machinery.”

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said he was “saddened by the loss of lives due to a mishap.”

“My thoughts are with the affected people and their families during this difficult time. Praying for the speedy recovery of the injured,” he said.

In recent months, monsoon rains have wreaked havoc, causing several cloudbursts, flash floods and landslides, mostly in northern India. Heavy monsoon rains usually begin in India in June and end in September.

Twenty-seven people have died in eastern West Bengal state after heavy rainfall triggered massive landslides and a bridge collapse, officials said Tuesday. More than 450 people have died in accidents in Himachal Pradesh state in 2025 during the monsoon season.