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12 dead after torrential overnight rain in Uttarakhand

Last updated on: August 01, 2024 18:42 IST

Twelve people, including three of a family, were killed and six injured in heavy overnight rains that triggered flooding and house collapse as several rivers swelled in Uttarakhand, officials said on Thursday.

IMAGE: People gather as a vehicle gets stuck in a road after a landslide occurred in the Pokhari village triggered by heavy rainfall near Karnaprayag, in Chamoli on July 31, 2024. Photograph: ANI Photo

Most parts of the state did not receive fresh rains till Thursday afternoon.

Six deaths were reported in Haridwar, three in Tehri, two in Dehradun and one in Chamoli.

A seven-year-old child, who was swept away in a swollen stream in Haldwani in Nainital district is still missing, the Disaster Control Room in Dehradun said.

 

Two people -- Sundar Singh and Arjun Singh Rana -- were swept away by the waters of an overflowing seasonal canal near the Ordnance Factory in Dehradun's Raipur area, Dehradun SSP Ajai Singh said, adding that their bodies have been recovered.

Water gushed into many homes in Dehradun besides leaving the roads heavily waterlogged at various places in the city.

The MeT office here said over the past 24 hours, 172 mm of rainfall was recorded in Dehradun alone.

Haridwar's Roshanabad recorded the highest rainfall of 210 mm, Raiwala recorded 163 mm of rain while it was 140 mm in Haldwani, 112 mm in Roorkee, 107 mm in Narendra Nagar, 98 mm in Dhanolti, 92 mm in Chakrata and 89 mm in Nainital, it said.

In Chamoli's in Devchauli, the body of a woman, who was missing since Wednesday evening after a house collapse, has been found.

In Bharpur village in Bahadarabad area of Haridwar district, four people were killed and six injured after a house collapsed due to heavy rain on Wednesday night, police said.

In another incident reported from Haridwar, two people got electrocuted at Roorkee bus stand.

Three members of a family -- Bhanu Prasad (50), his wife Neelam Devi (45) and son Vipin (28) -- were killed in a landslide that damaged their roadside restaurant following a cloudburst in Jakhanyali village of Tehri district's Ghansali area, the officials said.

Vipin was rescued but died while being taken to the AIIMS in Rishikesh, Tehri District Disaster Management Officer Brijesh Bhatt said.

Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami visited the disaster-hit Jakhanyali village and met the kin of those killed and consoled them.

Dhami said the government stands with the affected people. All possible assistance will be provided to them.

He directed Tehri District Magistrate to streamline road connectivity, electricity and drinking water supply in the affected areas to restore normalcy.

More than 1,500 pilgrims stranded on the Kedarnath trek route, which is blocked at several places by boulders, have been shifted to safe places.

Pilgrims are being rescued with the help of both helicopters and rescue teams consisting of the SDRF, NDRF, police and district administration.

According to officials, 425 pilgrims have been brought to safety by helicopter from Lincholi and Bhimbali while 1100 pilgrims have reached Sonprayag on foot from various places with the help of rescue teams.

The pilgrims had got stranded beyond Bhimbali along Gaurikund-Kedarnath trek route when 20-25 metres of the stretch were washed out by heavy rain on Wednesday night, Disaster Management Secretary Vinod Kumar Suman said.

The trek route to the Himalayan temple is blocked by boulders at Ghoraparav, Lincholi, Badi Lincholi and Bhimbali.

An advisory has been issued for Kedarnath-bound pilgrims asking them to wait in a safe place until the weather improves and the roads blocked here and there are restored.

Both Mandakini and Alaknanda rivers in Rudraprayag district are flowing close to the danger mark.

With this, fresh registrations for the Chardham Yatra have been put on hold for the time being.

Rudraprayag District Magistrate and Superintendent of Police are in Shersi to supervise the rescue operations.

Nearly a dozen four-wheelers parked along the riverbed of the Sukhi in Haridwar's Kharkhari area were washed away following torrential rain on Wednesday evening.

In Kharkhari, a truck carrying rations and essentials for a group of kanwariyas was among the vehicles washed away. No one was there in the truck when the incident took place on Wednesday.

Roads were submerged in many areas of Haridwar and the rainwater also entered the Kankhal police station.

Many colonies and markets of Bhupatwala, Haridwar, Naya Haridwar, Kankhal and Jwalapur also got flooded.

Schools up to class 12 and Anganwadi centres remained closed on Thursday in various districts, including Dehradun.

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