Rains wreak havoc in Himachal; five killed, 50 missing

SHIMLA: Five people were killed and about 50 missing following several incidents of cloudburst in Himachal Pradesh where rains washed away many houses, bridges and roads, officials said on Thursday.

The state emergency operation centre said the cloudbursts took place in Nirmand, Sainj and Malana areas in Kullu, Padhar in Mandi and Rampur in Shimla districts.

The local Meteorological office has issued a "red alert" of heavy to extremely heavy rains along with thunderstorms and lightning at isolated places in three districts of Kangra, Kullu and Mandi on Thursday.

A cloudburst near Shrikhand Mahadev on Wednesday night triggered flash floods in Sarpara, Ganvi and Kurban nallahs, and as a result, the water in Samej Khud (nallah) in the Rampur subdivision of the Shimla district rose leaving two people dead and about 30 missing, Superintendent of Police (SP), Shimla, Sanjeev Kumar Gandhi told PTI.

Four people have been rescued from the spot. The rescue operation is challenging as roads have been washed away, Shimla Deputy Commissioner (DC) Anupam Kashyap said.

The Manali-Chandigarh National Highway has been damaged at several places due to landslides, an official said.

The Shimla DC and SP, who were on the spot, said that teams of the Army, National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), Indo-Tibetan Border Police, State Disaster Response Force, police and home guards have started rescue operations and the help of drones is being taken to locate the missing persons.

Another cloudburst in the Rajban village near Terang in the Padhar subdivision of the Mandi district on Wednesday night left three persons dead and seven missing. Two houses were washed away while another was damaged, officials said.

Bodies of Chandi Devi (75), Chaitri Devi (90) and Baijru Ram (80) have been recovered and an injured person (25-year-old Ram Singh) has been rescued in serious condition, the officials added.

A cloudburst also occurred in Kullu district, leaving seven people missing.

"Seven people are missing and about eight-nine houses have been washed away in Bhagipul area of Nirmand block in Kullu district and CISF and special Home Guard (quick response team) have been deputed for search operation to locate the missing persons, Deputy Commissioner Kullu, Torul S Raveesh told the PTI.

She said three people were missing and three-four houses have been damaged in Samej on the border of Shimla district. A breach was also reported in Malana Dam but the situation is under control.

Some people are stuck in the Malana I hydropower project. They are in underground buildings and safe and NDRF and Home Guard teams are making efforts to rescue them, she said adding that the Manali-Chandigarh National Highway has been breached at numerous places due to landslides and gushing waters of River Beas.

All educational institutions and schools in the district have been closed for two days, she said.

Union Home Minister Amit Shah spoke to Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu and took stock of the situation arising due to the cloudburst in the state, and assured him of all help from the Centre.

Speaking with reporters after an emergency meeting on the matter, Sukhu said that massive damage has been caused in Shimla, Kullu and Mandi districts since Wednesday night and about 50 persons are missing and Manali has been cut off by road.

Sukhu said that state emergency operation centres have also been set up at 13 places in the state for disaster monitoring and directed the district administrations to provide immediate relief to the affected families, and construct Bailey bridges.

Five transport drones will be made available to enable the police to carry out transportation activities in the affected areas and 50 generators would be given to the police to ensure power back up.

He urged people to take precautionary measures and avoid going near rivulets and rivers.

Shah and Union Minister J P Nadda have assured all possible help, he said and added that support from the Army and the Air Force would be sought and the state would get two more teams of the NDRF to help in the disaster.

Nadda has sought a detailed report from the chief minister and assured all possible help from the Modi government.

"Received sad news of massive damage due to cloudbursts at different places in HP, had detailed talks on phone with chief minister regarding continuous natural disasters in the state and assured all possible help from Modi government", Nadda posted on X.

He also appealed to the BJP leaders and workers to reach out to the affected people and provide them relief.

Congress leaders Mallikarjun Kharge and Rahul Gandhi also condoled the loss of lives in the cloudburst incidents and asked party workers to extend help to those affected.

State Revenue minister Jagat Singh Negi said massive damage has been caused due to heavy rains and cloudburst in the state.

Road connectivity has been hampered in the affected areas. Four motorable bridges and footbridges have been washed away and rescue operations are going on in full swing, he said, adding the apple crop has also been damaged.

Shimla-Junga road was closed due to landslide and reports of vehicles being buried in debris in Rajnagar in Churah assembly constituency in Chamba and roads blocked in Hamirpur district have also poured in.

Heavy rains have lashed parts of Himachal since Wednesday evening and Palampur with 212 mm of rain was wettest in the state followed by Chauri (203 mm), Dharamshala (183.2 mm) Jogindernagar (161 mm), Kangra (150 mm), Sujanpur Tira (142 mm), Baijnath (135 mm), Nadaun 9103.5 mm) , Poanta Sahib(121.2 mm), Nahan (98.9m mm), Kufri (84.5 mm), Shimla (64.6 mm), Sainj (61 mm), Bilaspur (56 mm) and Berthin (50 mm).

Heavy to very heavy rain has been recorded at 20 stations in the state and the rainfall would continue in the state, said meteorological expert Sandeep Sharma, adding that an orange alert of heavy rain has been issued for Kangra, Chamba, Kullu and Mandi districts on Thursday.

The wet spell would continue for the next four-five days in the state. Data recorded till Tuesday showed that rain-related incidents had claimed 65 lives since the onset of monsoon on June 27. The state has also suffered losses to the tune of Rs 433 crore, according to the state's Emergency Operation Centre.