At least two people were killed, and 10 others are missing after a landslide triggered by heavy rain buried houses, shops and cattle sheds in Kotlabara of Thabang Rural Municipality-5 in Rolpa district, police said. Two other people were seriously injured.

Authorities fear more people could be trapped under the debris.

The landslide struck at around 8:40 pm on Wednesday, sweeping down from the hillside and burying structures where about seven families lived, including the house of Kamal Bahadur Pun Magar, according to police.

The bodies of 18-year-old Shanti Pun Magar and 67-year-old Kamal Bahadur Pun Magar were recovered from the debris. Relatives of the victims and local health worker Bimarsh Gharti Magar confirmed that the two had been caught in the landslide.

Gharti Magar said the difficult terrain was making it extremely challenging to rescue those trapped and provide medical treatment. The rescue operation began overnight and continued from early Thursday morning, police said.

Two others, 22-year-old Himal Pun Magar and 25-year-old Sanjay Gharti Magar, were seriously injured in the landslide. Police and residents rescued them and sent them towards Sulaichaur for treatment.

The Area Police Office in Uwa was alerted at around 9:30 pm. A police team was immediately dispatched and reached the site at about 10:15 pm. Police personnel remained at the scene throughout the night.

Police and residents are continuing the search for the missing. 

Deputy Superintendent of Police Pancha Kumar Bakhu, Rolpa police chief, said the search and rescue operation was continuing and that further details were expected as the operation progressed.

The affected area lies about 80 kilometres northeast of Liwang, the district headquarters of Rolpa. The Uwa area is considered highly vulnerable to landslides. A landslide in another village nearby some years ago killed at least six people.