Massive landslide buries trucks in northwestern Pakistan

Officials say a massive landslide triggered by lightning amid rain has struck a key highway near the Torkham border town in northwestern Pakistan, burying several trucks and injuring some people

A massive landslide struck a key highway in northwestern Pakistan near the border town of Torkham before dawn Tuesday, burying several trucks and injuring some people, police and rescue officials said.

Police official Ishrat Khan said dozens of firefighters and rescuers were trying to save truck drivers and other people hit by the landslide, near the Afghan border. Officials said the landslide was triggered by lightning amid rain.

He said the injured were being transported to a nearby hospital. Volunteers have also joined the search for survivors. Authorities dispatched heavy machinery to Torkham to try and remove the massive mudslide, Khan said.

The Torkham border crossing is a trade route between Pakistan and Afghanistan and a location where landslides often block highways, especially in the mountainous areas. Last summer, floods caused by monsoon rains killed 1,739 people in Pakistan.