J&K flash floods: 12 dead, several missing as landslides hit Poonch-Rajouri; CM assures help while rescue ops underway
In a tragic incident, at least 12 people lost their lives and several others were reported missing after heavy rainfall triggered landslides and flash floods
In a tragic incident, at least 12 people lost their lives and several others were reported missing after heavy rainfall triggered landslides and flash floods across the border districts of Poonch and Rajouri in Jammu and Kashmir on Sunday, according to officials. The extreme weather caused extensive damage to roads, houses, and other public and private infrastructure. The disaster prompted Chief Minister Omar Abdullah to cancel his planned participation in the Conference's statehood protest in Delhi on Monday and travel to Jammu to assess the situation and monitor relief operations. He arrived at the Civil Secretariat at around 6 pm and chaired a high-level review meeting. Officials said the worst-hit area was Surankote tehsil in Poonch district, where most of the deaths were reported, while rescue teams continued efforts to locate those still missing. ‘Rescue efforts are ongoing’: DC Deputy Commissioner Poonch Ashok Kumar Sharma said at least 16 persons are feared dead in the district with bodies of nine recovered so far. "The rescue efforts are ongoing while all measures are being taken to provide immediate relief to the affected population," Sharma, who visited various flood-hit areas during the day, told PTI on phone. However, a police official said one more body was recovered in Surankote area of Poonch in the evening taking the death toll to 10, while two persons including a woman lost their lives in flash floods in Rajouri district. Lt Governor Manoj Sinha and Chief Minister Abdullah expressed their grief over the loss of lives in the natural fury and assured rehabilitation of the affected population.
chief minister Ghulam Nabi Azad and CPI(M) leader M Y Tarigami also extended heartfelt condolences to the bereaved families and expressed solidarity with all those affected by the calamity. Victims in &K flash floods In the most heart-wrenching incident, eight members of a family were buried when their house on the banks of a stream came under a landslide following a cloudburst in lower Murrah village of Surankote early Sunday, the officials said. While bodies of three persons, including a two-year-old boy, Sofian Yasar, were retrieved from the debris, a search operation was continuing to trace the remaining missing persons, they said. Also Read | US weather: Hundreds trapped as Missouri flash floods wreak havoc Four members of another family were reported missing after their house was washed away by flash floods at Sangla village, the officials said, adding the missing persons include Abdul Hameed, his wife Sharifa Begum, daughter Areeba and sister Manira Begum. Bodies of two of the missing persons were retrieved, the officials said. A 28-year-old woman, Nazia Kousar, was killed when her house collapsed in Noonabandi village. Her Husband, Mohd Hafiz, and three children, aged between two and six years, were rescued with injuries and shifted to a hospital, officials said. Shahzaib Ahmad (22) lost his life when his house collapsed at Sanglani-Surankote, while a minor girl identified as Iram drowned in a stream at Marhote. An unidentified body of a woman was also fished out from a stream near Dhundak Lathoong bridge, the officials said.
The BriefWire