No less than 56 individuals have been killed after flash flooding hit a distant, mountainous village in Indian-controlled Kashmir.
Estimates counsel at the least 80 individuals are nonetheless lacking within the devastated Himalayan village of Chasoti, within the Jammu and Kashmir area, in line with native officers.
Rescue groups have introduced 300 individuals to security, they added.
Chasoti, round 85 miles (136km) northeast of Jammu, is the final village accessible to automobiles on the route of an annual Hindu pilgrimage to a mountainous shrine, the Machail Mata temple.
The devastating floods swept away the principle neighborhood kitchen, the place greater than 200 pilgrims have been gathered, in addition to dozens of automobiles and motorbikes, officers mentioned.
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No less than 50 different individuals are reportedly nonetheless lacking. Pic AP
Abdul Majeed Bichoo, a neighborhood resident from a neighbouring village, mentioned he witnessed the our bodies of eight individuals being pulled out from underneath the mud.
The 75-year-old mentioned Chasoti had develop into a “sight of complete devastation from all sides”.
“It was heartbreaking and an unbearable sight,” he continued. “I have not seen this kind of destruction of life and property in my life.”
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Chasoti is a distant village within the Jammu and Kashmir area
India’s deputy minister for science and expertise, Jitendra Singh, mentioned the floods have been triggered by torrential rains.
Sudden, intense downpours over small areas – often known as cloudbursts – are more and more frequent in India’s Himalayan areas, that are liable to flash floods and landslides.
Final week, floodwater crashed by means of a complete Himalayan village in India’s Uttarakhand state.
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Final week, flash flooding swept by means of a village within the Uttarakhand state
Tv footage confirmed pilgrims in Chasoti crying in worry as water flooded the village.
No less than 50 of the rescued individuals have been badly injured and have been being handled in native hospitals, native official Susheel Kumar Sharma mentioned.
Officers mentioned the Hindu pilgrimage, which started in July and was scheduled to finish on 5 September, has been suspended. Extra rescue groups have been on the way in which to the world, they added.
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“Army, air force teams have also been activated. Search and rescue operations are underway,” Mr Kumar mentioned.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi mentioned “the situation is being monitored closely” and provided his prayers to “all those affected by the cloudburst and flooding.”
Cloudbursts could cause intense flooding and landslides, and have elevated lately, partly attributable to local weather change.
Injury from the storms has additionally been exacerbated by unplanned improvement in mountain areas.
