2 washed away in Rajouri-Poonch floods, 15 houses damaged
Snowfall on hills in Kashmir, rains lash J&K
Gopal Sharma
JAMMU, Aug 18: Two more bodies (limbs) were recovered from the debris in the cloudburst-hit Chashoti village in Kishtwar district, taking the death toll in the natural calamity to 63, as a large-scale search continued for the 5th consecutive day today despite rain while two persons were washed away in the floods in Rajouri and Poonch districts.
Officials said that heavy rain wrecked havoc in Poonch and Rajouri belts of Pir Panjal today, causing damage to at least 15 houses. The flood water entered in some localities of Poonch City causing damage to the public property. A minor girl washed away in a flooded Nallah in Bafliaz area of Surankote in Poonch while a youth went missing after he washed away in flooded Nallah in Karian Dassal area of Rajouri this afternoon.
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Mughal Road and several other link roads have been blocked in the region since last night due to landslides and shooting of stones while in Kathua and Udhampur areas also more than a dozen roads have been closed.
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Direct connectivity to Basohli- Bani and Billawar from Kathua has been snapped as bridge between Lakhanpur and Mahanpur has been badly damaged due to heavy rain and flood and Dyalachak-Chhallan-Billawar road has also been blocked as a major portion of the approach road to Tarnah bridge near Dinga Amb has collapsed. Most of the link roads of Bani Sub Division are also closed besides in Ramnagar and Dudu-Basantgarh Sub Divisions.
A senior official at Paddar said that despite frequent spells of rain the rescue teams were working at multiple locations, especially the major impact spot near a langar (community kitchen) site, sifting through the rubble using machinery, including earth movers, and sniffer dogs.
-Excelsior/Ramesh Bali
Two bodies, one of them of a woman, were recovered this afternoon. The woman’s body was found downstream in a gorge near Masu village, while the other body/limbs, was found buried near a temple.
With the recovery of the two bodies, the death toll in the flash floods triggered by the cloudburst on August 14 in Chashoti, on Machail Mata Yatra route in Paddar Sub Division has reached up to 63. The dead included three CISF personnel and one SPO.
The Deputy Commissioner said that as per data compiled from PCRs Kishtwar/ Help Desks and other information centres, 131 distress calls were received for 137 missing persons from day one. But later many of their relatives/ family members who were injured and rescued contacted them from hospitals. Now after counting dead ones and handing over bodies, 43 missing persons are yet to be traced. He said today limbs of two persons were also recovered. An unidentified headless female body is still lying in District Hospital Kishtwar.
At least 120 persons were rescued, while the number of missing has now dropped to 43 after a fresh revision of the list this morning, the Dy Commissioner maintained.
Army’s Jammu-based White Knight Corps, in a post on X, said five relief columns of the force are engaged in the rescue and relief operations and efforts have been further intensified with additional medical teams deployed.
“Despite adverse terrain and weather, a bridge over Chashoti Nallah was completed on August 17, expediting relief and evacuation. Additional equipment is being moved forward to strengthen operations and senior Army functionaries are on ground to oversee relief and rescue,” the army said, adding close coordination with civil agencies continues to expedite relief efforts.
The flash-floods triggered by the cloudburst left a trail of destruction, flattening a makeshift market, a langar site for the annual Machail Mata Yatra, damaging 16 houses and government buildings, three temples, four water mills and a 30-metre-long bridge, besides over a dozen vehicles.
“Today is the fifth day of the operation, and combined efforts are underway to recover the mortal remains of the missing persons. The weather is challenging in view of the rain. We also have a warning (of heavy rains) for the day, but still we are trying our best,” a CISF officer said.
The joint teams of Police, Army, National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), CISF, Border Roads Organisation (BRO), civil administration, and local volunteers are engaged in the rescue efforts.
Army engineers on Sunday built a Bailey bridge over Chashoti nullah, providing much-needed connectivity to the village and the Machail Mata shrine. The Army has also inducted a couple of all-terrain vehicles as part of the efforts to intensify the rescue and relief operation, officials said.
The rescuers conducted half a dozen controlled explosions over the last two days to blow up giant boulders hampering the search.
The rescuers are utilising over a dozen earth-movers and other heavy equipment, while the NDRF mobilised its resources, including dog squads, to speed up the rescue operation.
Two specialist mobility vehicles (SMVs) by Chandigarh-based JSW Defence have been deployed in the ongoing rescue and relief operation in this cloudburst-hit village of Kishtwar district, drawing attention for their ability to manoeuvre through treacherous terrain.
With ‘Army duty’ stickers pasted on them, the SMVs which are also known as all terrain off-road vehicles were brought by the company to assist the Army, which along with other agencies, is engaged in the rescue and relief efforts.
“This is the first time that SMVs, a modern vehicle equipped to tackle extreme conditions, are being inducted in rescue and relief efforts anywhere in the country. As an Indian company, we have taken this initiative to send two such vehicles to support the operation,” a company official Jaipal Singh said.
The vehicle is designed to navigate challenging terrains like snow-covered mountains, rocky landscapes, swamps, deserts and water bodies, making it ideal for operations in regions like the Himalayas.
“The vehicle can carry a weight of 1200 kilograms. It can move with nine people including a driver and a co-driver and can easily cross streams, providing enhanced mobility,” Singh said.
Additional Director General of CISF Sudhir Kumar also visited the cloudburst-hit village of Chashoti to oversee the ongoing rescue operation and lauded his personnel for saving lives.
He told reporters that three of the force personnel lost their lives and another is still missing in the natural calamity which struck the village on August 14. So far, the bodies of 61 people, including the three CISF personnel, have been recovered, while over 100 were rescued in an injured condition.
“We had deployment of 25 personnel in the village to provide security to pilgrims visiting Machail Mata shrine when the tragedy struck, also impacting one of our barracks. I was told by the jawans that the cloudburst only lasted 18 seconds but brought down the hill, burying everything which came in the way,” the ADG of CISF) told reporters.
In addition to the three personnel who lost their lives, another identified as Mura is still missing, he said.
“When some of our people were able to save themselves from the impact, they came running to and rescued many women and children from the rubble and sent them to hospital in private vehicles. They were the first respondents to the tragedy,” he added.
The officer said one-and-a-half company strength, comprising 150 personnel, were also rushed from Kishtwar and Dul Hasti Power Project locations to assist other agencies and civil administration in the rescue efforts.
Reports from Rajouri said that 21-year-old youth, Atif Shah, son of Ashfaq Shah, washed away in flooded Nallah when he was crossing it. The water level suddenly increased and he washed away in flash flood.
Immediately after the incident, SSP Rajouri, Gaurav Sikarwar along with his police team, rushed to the spot to supervise the rescue efforts.
An SDRF team led by DySP Jabeen Akhter, Deputy Controller Civil Defence Rajouri, also reached the site and launched a search operation to trace the body. A large number of locals are actively assisting the police and SDRF in the ongoing operation.
Continuous heavy rains since early Monday morning have severely disrupted normal life in Rajouri district, creating a flood-like situation as rivers and streams are overflowing at dangerous levels. Residents in low-lying areas are living in fear as standing crops in several villages have been submerged, while initial reports confirmed that eight houses have been damaged in different areas of the district.
Taking stock of the situation, the Police have appealed to the public to stay away from river and stream banks until the weather improves, cautioning that any negligence could prove fatal.
Continuous rainfall and subsequent landslides in hilly areas have also blocked several internal roads, disrupting connectivity to remote villages including Thannamandi, Darhal, Koteranka, Budhal, and adjoining belts.
In Thannamandi, two houses collapsed in Husplote Bhattian Ward No. 7, belonging to Zatoon Begum, widow of Makhan Din, and Mohd Zaman, son of Kalam Deen. Four houses have been reported damaged in the Manjakot area and two more houses in Khawas. Fortunately, no loss of life has been reported as residents had already left their homes before the collapse.
Meanwhile, with water levels rising alarmingly in the Sukhto River in Rajouri, police teams led by SHO Abid Bukhari evacuated all slum dwellers living close to the river and shifted them to safer locations.
Early morning flood in Betar Nallah and Poonch river wrecked havoc. At least eight houses were damaged whole two washed away in Purani Poonch and ward No 2. The flood water entered many localities and damaged properties of the public.
Deputy Commissioner Poonch Ashok Sharma said that at least 7-8 houses have been damaged with the rains and flood in Poonch. He said the affected families were shifted to safer locations and they were provided immediate assistance. He said that a minor girl Asiya Kouser ( 7 yrs), daughter of Mushtaq Ahmed has reportedly washed away in flooded Nallah in Bafliaz area. The locals and police/ SDRF men were searching for her body. He further added that flood has caused some damage in Mendhar area and people have been advised to take note of government advisory. He further said that Mughal Road has been blocked due to landslides and shooting stones. It is expected to be restored by tomorrow.
The traffic on Jammu-Srinagar National Highway was suspended for a few hours during the day due to landslides at two places including Seri and Marog. The road however was restored shortly.
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