Himachal flash floods: search operation to find missing people intensified, others rescued

Search operations have been intensified to trace 10 people missing since the flash floods triggered by cloudbursts in Himachal's Kangra and Kullu districts, officials said on Thursday, 26 June.

With the recovery of two more bodies from a hydro project site in Kangra district, the death toll has risen to four, officials said on Thursday, 26 June.

Two bodies were recovered on 25 June, while two more bodies were traced on Thursday, Additional Deputy Magistrate Kangra Shilpa Bekta said.

The deceased have been identified as Chain Singh, a resident of Jammu and Kashmir, Aditya Thakur from Chamba, and Pardeep Verma and Chandan from Uttar Pradesh, Kangra SP Shalini Agnihotri said on Thursday.

At least 20 people are feared to have been swept away due to heavy rain on 25 June evening but some of the missing people have since been rescued.

National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) Commandant Baljinder Singh said they are trying to trace the people who are feared to have been swept away from the project site.

In Manuni Khad in Kangra district, around 15-20 workers stationed at a labour colony near the Indira Priyadarshini Hydroelectric project site were feared swept away following a surge in water level in Manuni Khad of Khaniyara. Two people died due to the flash flood at the site.

Three people at Rehla Bihal in Kullu district, who were washed away in the deluge while trying to take away valuables from their homes, are still missing.

Two teams of State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) and a team of home guards have been deployed at the spot and the National Disaster response Force (NDRF) has also been called for rescue efforts, Deputy Commissioner Hemraj Bairwa after visiting the site.

At the hydroelectric project site, six people are feared swept away by the floods while one person was seen fleeing to a nearby hill to save himself. His whereabouts are also not yet known, the DC said.

The rest have been rescued safely, he said, adding that search and rescue is the first priority.

Some of the missing people hail from Nurpur and Chamba areas of Himachal Pradesh and others from Uttar Pradesh.

BJP national president J P Nadda expressed condolences to the bereaved families of the workers who were swept away due to sudden increase in water flow in Manuni Khad.

“In this hour of crisis, every BJP worker is dedicated to providing all possible help to the citizens of Devbhoomi. I pray to God to give peace to the departed souls and provide strength to the bereaved families”, he said in a statement issued here.

Dharamshala BJP MLA Sudhir Sharma who reached the spot on Thursday said the project site was one kilometer from his village. He said he received a call on Wednesday that the water level has surged and 15-20 people had been swept away.

Sharma said that building sheds for labourers near the drain, and not shifting them when the weather was unsafe areas was negligence and an investigation should be initiated.

The MLA also demanded adequate compensation to the family of the deceased.

According to officials, the project work had been suspended due to the rain, and the workers were resting in temporary shelters near the site when floodwaters from Manuni Khad and nearby drains diverted towards the labour colony, sweeping several of them them away.

In Kullu district, a search is underway to find three people who were swept away while trying to take away their valuables from their homes in Rehla Bihal area of Sainj.

Three cloudbursts incidents were reported from Jeeva Nallah and Rehla Bihal in Sainj and Shilagarh in Gadsa area of Kullu district.

Flash floods were also reported from Manali and Banjar in the district, and search operations were underway.