Five people, belonging to two families, have been killed in a massive landslide triggered by heavy rainfall at Lama upazila in Bandarban district.
The incident occurred early Thursday (July 9) morning at Mission Para area in Ward No. 2 under Aziz Nagar union of the upazila.
In a separate landslide the same night, a female union parishad member sustained serious injuries.
The deceased were identified as Md Yunus, 28, his wife Ranu Akter, 22, and their four-year-old son Md Soleman, all residents of Mission Para in Aziz Nagar union.
The other victims were Md Jewel, 34, and his wife Kulsuma Akter, 25.
According to local residents, the couple had been living in the area for their livelihood.
Acting Chairman of Aziz Nagar Union Parishad Md Mobarak Hossain confirmed the identities of the victims.
Local sources said a large chunk of a hillside suddenly collapsed onto two houses at around 4:00am, burying the occupants while they were asleep.
After receiving information, local residents, members of the Fire Service and Civil Defence, and police jointly carried out a rescue operation. Following hours of effort, rescuers recovered the bodies of all five victims from beneath the debris.
In another landslide at around 1:30am the same night, the house of reserved female Union Parishad (UP) member Rehana Begum at Uttar Para in Aziz Nagar union was damaged, leaving her seriously injured. Local residents rescued her and admitted her to Ma Moni General Hospital in Lohagara upazila.
Officer-in-Charge of Lama Police Station Md Kaisar Hamid said the bodies had been handed over to the victims' families. He added that the process of filing an unnatural death (UD) case was underway.
END/CORRESPONDENT/ASA
