Mechi Highway remains blocked for over a week following massive landslide in Ilam

Ilam: The Mechi Highway, blocked by a massive landslide at Rajduwali  in Ilam Municipality–9 since the 4th of October, remains closed.

Chief District Officer of Ilam Sunita Nepal stated that traffic would remain halted until the road was made safe.

She added that while the obstruction at Milgolai has been cleared, the Rajduwali section is still blocked, affecting travel between Jhapa, Ilam, Panchthar, and Taplejung.

Chief District Officer Sunita Nepal has urged the public to avoid traveling through the affected route until further notice from the administration, and efforts are underway to open alternative routes.

The Road Division Ilam, Chief Pawan Bhattarai said the landslide was extensive and that the team was working day and night to clear it, but the entire hillside had collapsed.

Passengers are walking about 1.5 km across the blocked area, with security personnel assisting the elderly and sick.

Alternative routes have also been damaged by landslides.

The Mechi Corridor road and the Jogmai Khola Bailey Bridge have been washed away, cutting off five of Ilam’s ten local levels from the district headquarters.

According to the District Administration Office, 39 people have died, 26 were injured, and one remains missing in recent floods and landslides.