HCMC – A landslide struck Bao Loc Pass in the Central Highlands province of Lam Dong this afternoon, July 20, burying part of a traffic police station and leaving three traffic policemen dead and one resident missing, the local media reported.
Authorities of Lam Dong Province mobilized forces to search for three policemen at a station on the pass and one local who went missing. Later, they found the bodies of the three policemen.
Traffic ground to a halt as a section of Bao Loc Pass near the Madagui traffic police station was hit by a landslide at around 3:00 p.m. due to heavy rain. Huge masses of rocks, soil and mud slid down from the hilltop, covering the police station and part of the road.
A 45-seat passenger bus traveling on the pass was almost pushed off the road into an abyss, the VnExpress news site reported.
Authorities of Lam Dong directed vehicles to provincial roads 721 and 725 to avoid the traffic snarl on the pass.
Heavy rain also caused landslides in some areas in Dai Lao Commune and Da M’ri Town on the Bao Loc Pass and flooding in Bao Loc City, Bao Lam District, and Da Huoai District.
In recent times, Lam Dong Province has experienced multiple landslides. On June 29, a retaining wall on Hoang Hoa Tham Street, Ward 10, Dalat City, collapsed, damaging houses and other structures below. Two people were killed and four others injured in the incident.