Photo Courtesy: nenews
Kohima: A landslide flattened the District Transport Office in the Post Office Ward of Nagaland’s Tuensang district on Thursday morning. The structure gave way under the weight of relentless monsoon rains. The building was already empty. Officials had ordered a full evacuation after declaring the site structurally unsound.
Deputy Commissioner and DDMA Chairman Lithrongla Tongpi Rutsa issued an Emergency Demolition Order on July 23, 2026. The office shut down on July 24. This move halted essential services like driving licence issuance, vehicle registration, tax collection, and permits. Workers had begun tearing down the structure as the earth beneath it gave way. The ground was sinking at a rate of six to eight inches every day.
The Nagaland State Disaster Management Authority confirms that 49 families have fled their homes since July 19. This includes 44 households from the area directly below the transport office and five families from Post Office Ward and Bazar A Ward. Two other buildings were already torn down to prevent further disaster. The PWD Housing Disaster Response Force managed the site, strictly barring unauthorized entry to ensure safety. No injuries occurred during the collapse.
Displaced residents are currently staying in relief camps at the Tuensang Town Hall. The administration is providing aid to those left homeless by the shifting ground. The disaster highlights the mounting toll of the monsoon in the region, where "incessant rainfall" has crippled infrastructure and forced residents to abandon their homes.
Updated at 28th August 2026 at 1:49am
The structure finally gave way at 8:17 am on August 27. SDRF teams stationed on site signaled the collapse before it happened, ensuring the area remained clear of civilians. Officials credited the successful avoidance of injuries to weeks of proactive demolition work that trimmed the building's weight before the ground gave out.
Records show the mitigation effort started July 24 with a multi-agency operation involving the SDRF, PWD Housing, PWD National Highways, and local volunteers. Teams halted active demolition on July 29 when the site became too unstable for workers to remain safely inside the perimeter. For the next month, police and technical experts kept a 24-hour watch on the slope to track shifting earth.
The administration moved transport services to KC Lodge to keep paperwork and licensing running. Beyond providing shelter at the Town Hall, local authorities distributed financial assistance to the displaced families, supplemented by relief supplies from Lions Club International Dimapur.
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