Landslide in India: 20 dead, 10 children

(ANSA) - NEW DELHI, JUNE 2 - An avalanche in the Barak valley, in the state of Assam, swept a village today, killing at least twenty people, half of whom were children. The landslide was the consequence of three days of premonsonic rain that swept northeastern India. District authorities fear that the count of the victims will increase as the rescuers clear what remains of the houses from the mud. Forests Parimal Suklabaidya said that nine other people lost their lives in the district in the past weeks due to the rains, large areas that were submerged, with at least 200,000 homes devastated, and over 2,600 hectares lost.