At least 5 dead after landslide, heavy rains hit 4 U'khand dists
Dehradun/Mussoorie, Aug. 30 -- At least five people were killed and 11 others went missing after incidents of cloudbursts, flash floods and mudslides in Chamoli, Rudraprayag, Tehri Garhwal and Bageshwar districts of Uttarakhand on the intervening night of Thursday and Friday, district officials said.
Several houses were damaged as debris entered houses, while agricultural fields were inundated and livestock buried under the debris and rubble, they said.
Teams from national disaster response force (NDRF), state disaster response force (SDRF), police, and revenue were sent to the affected sites for rescue and relief operations.
In Chamoli's Mopata village, two people were buried under debris swept by extremely heavy rainfall. Two people received minor injuries. An unspecified number of livestock also went missing. A house was completely damaged in the incident, the officials said.
Chamoli's chief development officer Abhishek Tripathi said around 2am, a house collapsed in Mopata village of Dewal tehsil after it came under debris from a landslide triggered by heavy rainfall, leaving two people dead and two others injured.
In Basukedar and Jakholi tehsils of Rudraprayag district, one person was killed and eight others went missing in several villages in rain-related incidents.
Rudraprayag district magistrate Prateek Jain said they received information at around 4.54am about the damage caused in several villages of Basukedar and Jakholi tehsils due to extreme rainfall. "A person died, while eight others are missing in Chhenagarh area," he said.
"Some houses were damaged and vehicles were swept away in Syoor due to heavy rainfall. In Badeith, Bagdhar, and Taljamni, water and debris entered homes. In Kimana, farmland and roads were damaged by heavy boulders and debris."
He said in Arkhund, a fish pond and poultry farm came under debris from the landslide. "In the Chenagad market area, debris filled the marketplace and several vehicles were swept away, while in Chenagad Dugar village and Jaula Badeith, reports of missing people have been received."
He said the teams from NDRF, SDRF, District Disaster Response Force (DDRF), police and revenue were rushed to the affected sites and relief and rescue operations are underway on war footing.
"Over 200 people have been shifted to safe places from the disaster-hit places," the DM said.
In Bageshwar's Simoti village, two people were killed and three others were missing after a cloudburst.
SDRF Commandant Arpan Yaduvanshi said they received information from the district control room about a cloudburst in Simoti village in Bageshwar. "Our local team rushed to the spot. Local villagers managed to rescue one person, while the SDRF team recovered two bodies during the rescue operation," he said.
"Our efforts are underway to trace three missing persons along with NDRF, local police, fire service," he said.
In Tehri Garhwal's Genwali village, a suspected cloudburst occurred around 3am, about 500 metres inside the forest area, officials said.
In Genwali, huts, a cowshed with cattle, temples, farmland, water supply lines and electricity infrastructure were hit, while culverts in Parsil, Khwadang and Genwali Gad were damaged.
Rising water in the Balganga river inundated farmland and roads in Jakhana, and fields in Kumed Gadera were also affected. In Ghansali tehsil, the swollen Nailchami river disrupted power supply, damaged drinking water schemes in several hamlets, washed away a culvert in Thela and destroyed irrigation channels in adjoining areas.
Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami held a high-level review meeting. He spoke to the district magistrates of the affected areas over phone and instructed them to ensure immediate evacuation of people to safe locations. He also directed officials to restore roads, electricity and drinking water supply at the earliest and provide all basic facilities to the affected population without delay.
He said that the district administrations must remain on alert throughout the monsoon and ensure that all required resources are made available promptly for relief work. He further instructed that compensation to affected families should be provided at the earliest as per norms.
The incidents came in the wake of flash floods in Uttarkashi's Dharali and Chamoli's Tharali earlier this month.
Heavy rain forecast for next four days
India Meteorological Department (IMD) Dehradun Centre has issued an orange alert, forecasting heavy to very heavy rainfall across several districts in the state over the next four days.
On Saturday, the IMD predicted heavy rain accompanied by thunderstorms, lightning and extremely intense spells at isolated places in Dehradun, Uttarkashi and Bageshwar. A yellow alert was also issued for Tehri, Rudraprayag, Chamoli, Pithoragarh and Pauri. The alert continues through Sunday for Dehradun, Uttarkashi, Rudraprayag, Chamoli and Bageshwar.
On Monday, Bageshwar, Dehradun, Nainital and Pithoragarh districts will be under orange alert, while on Tuesday heavy rain is expected in Bageshwar, Dehradun and Chamoli. Officials at the IMD's Dehradun centre have cautioned residents of possible landslides, flash floods and road blockages, advising people to stay updated with weather bulletins and avoid non-essential travel.
Meanwhile, heavy showers lashed several parts of the state in the past 24 hours till 8.30 am on Friday.
The state recorded 42.6 mm of rainfall, an excess of 369% against the normal of 9.1 mm. Bageshwar reported 84.6 mm of rain, a staggering 1,963% above normal, followed by Chamoli (72.3 mm, 1,290% above normal), Rudraprayag (94.9 mm, 541%), Tehri (20.5 mm, 414%) and Almora (16.5 mm, 302%). Nainital recorded 55.7 mm of rain, 345% above normal, while Dehradun and Haridwar reported 16% below-normal rainfall.
Between 8.30 am and 12 pm on Friday, the highest rainfall was reported from Khatima in Udham Singh Nagar (34 mm). Other significant rainfall included 20.5 mm at Nainbagh (Tehri), 12 mm in Chakrata (Dehradun), 9.5 mm in Tanakpur (Champawat), 9 mm in Bastia (Bageshwar) and 6.5 mm each at Naugaon and Barkot (Uttarkashi)....
To read the full article or to get the complete feed from this publication, please
Contact Us.