Massive Landslide Cuts Off Prithvi Highway at Fishling, Stranding Thousands of Commuters
A major landslide triggered by relentless torrential rainfall has completely blocked the Prithvi Highway near Fishling, bringing vehicular movement to an absolute standstill on one of Nepal’s most critical transport arteries. The debris, consisting of heavy mud, boulders, and uprooted trees, cascaded down the hillside early in the morning, burying a significant stretch of the roadway and cutting off the primary vehicular link between the capital city of Kathmandu and the rest of the country. With the highway completely obstructed, thousands of passengers, freight trucks, and public buses have been left stranded in long queues stretching for kilometers on both sides of the blockage, creating massive logistical bottlenecks.
Local authorities and emergency response teams arrived at the scene shortly after the incident to initiate clearance operations, deploying heavy excavators and bulldozers to remove the massive pile of debris. However, the cleanup efforts have faced severe challenges, as continuous rainfall and the threat of secondary landslides from the unstable hillside have repeatedly halted the heavy machinery. Traffic police have urged commuters to delay their travel plans or seek alternative, smaller routes where possible, though many detour roads are already experiencing severe congestion. As workers race against the clock to reopen at least one lane of the highway, the incident highlights the recurring vulnerability of the region’s vital infrastructure to monsoon-driven natural disasters.
