'A hand is someone's son, a foot is someone's father': Now, flood of severed limbs spooks Kishtwar's Chasoti; toll rises to 68
On Tuesday, four more bodies and two severed feet arrived, taking the confirmed death toll to 68.
With 72 still missing and no survivors found after the first two days, doctors and villagers believe the final toll could climb much higher. "The way things are, the toll will not stop here, said Dr Rakesh Kotwal, posted at Atholi sub-district hospital.
Kotwal's colleague Dr Devendra Kumar told him that there had been 350-400 people at the langar when the flood struck, and named several locals who were later confirmed dead.
Kotwal added that about 100 people were on the narrow bridge across the stream at the time, crossing from both directions.
"We can account for about 14 locals," Kotwal said, "but there is no way of knowing how many others were there."
Doctors and locals say there is now little hope of any survivors among those still missing. "The last injured person came here on Aug 16," said Dr Showkat Parray, a surgeon at the hospital.
As the waters receded, more bodies began to surface.
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Both Showkat and Kotwal admitted that finding an intact body now feels like a form of relief. "When a complete body comes in, at least a family can take their relative home, perform rites and find closure," Showkat said.
"But when it is only a leg or a foot, we have to keep it separately, record it as a casualty, and wait for DNA. Until then, it is an orphaned piece of information." Limbs and torsos are being catalogued and sent to Jammu, where DNA samples from families will be stored and matched.
In Chasoti, villagers spoke of waiting not for loved ones alive but for whatever fragments might be found. Abdul Majid, 54, whose nephew is among the missing, said simply: "A hand is someone's son, a foot is someone's father. We wait for parts in bags now."
Shiv Kumar, 38, lost his sister and her two children. Only her torso has been recovered. "We lit the pyre for what we had, but the mourning does not end," he said. Shabnam Begum, 29, who lost her husband and father-in-law, said she no longer goes to the riverbank. "In the first days I stood there, thinking someone alive might still come out. Now I know it is only pieces. I cannot watch anymore."
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