Four members of the same family died in a landslide in ward 2 of Phaktanglung Rural Municipality in Taplejung district on Thursday night.

According to Deputy Superintendent Ravi Rawal of the Taplejung District Police Office, the victims were the father and stepmother of Phaktanglung Rural Municipality vice-chair Rabin Samra and their two children.

The deceased include 70-year-old Ram Bahadur Samra and his 48-year-old wife Jas Maya Limbu. Their 10-year-old twin daughters also perished in the disaster.

The landslide, which struck at night, swept away a house, and the victims were unable to escape as they were asleep, police suspect. A team from the Singwa Police Post has already reached the site, said Rawal.

Another landslide near Khejenim School injured 40-year-old Yugen Samra and his three-year-old daughter, according to the Nepal Red Cross Society, Taplejung. Red Cross Society President Indra Gurung said the landslide also damaged Yugen’s house.

DSP Rawal said an additional team led by Inspector Kamal Lungeli has been deployed from the District Police Office. “Currently it is raining in several areas of the district, including the district headquarters, Phungling,” said Rawal.

Earlier on Thursday, floods in the Sewa and Sisne rivers washed away four temporary bridges and blocked the road leading north of the district. The arrival of the monsoon has caused havoc in the eastern hilly region.