Latest news with #Chashoti
CNN
14 hours ago
- Climate
- CNN
Sudden, heavy rain in Indian Kashmir leaves dozens dead, more than 200 missing
A sudden burst of heavy rain has claimed dozens of lives in India-administered Kashmir and sparked frantic rescue efforts, the second recent disaster to underscore the vulnerability of those living in the Himalayas to the effects of extreme weather. At least 46 people have died and more than 200 are missing in the town of Chashoti, a popular pilgrimage destination for Hindu tourists, Reuters reported citing local officials. Flash floods caused by the rain turned roads into raging rivers while the downpour devastated entire buildings and swept away vehicles, dramatic video shared on social media showed. A wall of water, mud and debris could be seen rolling down the mountainside, one of the videos showed. Rescue operations are ongoing with army and police personnel working to find those missing. 'The news is grim & accurate,' Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah wrote in a social media post. 'All possible resources are being mobilised from within & beyond J&K to manage the rescue operations.' Some of the rescued people have been taken to hospitals. India's Meteorological Department said the rainfall was due to a 'cloudburst,' which is a sudden and heavy downpour of over 100 mm (4 inches) of rain in just one hour. It can trigger sudden floods, landslides, and devastation, especially in mountainous regions during the monsoon. Earlier this month, another surge of flood water tore through a mountainous village in the Himalayas in India's northern Uttarakhand state, leaving at least four people dead. Abdullah said he has cancelled some events that had been planned to celebrate the anniversary of India's independence from Britain on Friday. Thursday's floods washed away a community kitchen and security post at a pit stop along the pilgrimage route, Reuters reported citing a local official who declined to be named because he was not authorized to speak to the media. 'A large number of pilgrims had gathered for lunch and they were washed away,' the official said. The Machail yatra is a popular pilgrimage to the high altitude Himalayan shrine of Machail Mata, one of the manifestations of Goddess Durga, and pilgrims trek to the temple from Chasoti, where the road for vehicles ends. The disaster occurred at 11:30am local time, Ramesh Kumar, the divisional commissioner of Kishtwar district, told news agency ANI, adding that local police and disaster response officials had reached the scene. 'Army, air force teams have also been activated. Search and rescue operations are underway,' Kumar said.
CNN
14 hours ago
- Climate
- CNN
Sudden, heavy rain in Indian Kashmir leaves dozens dead, more than 200 missing
A sudden burst of heavy rain has claimed dozens of lives in India-administered Kashmir and sparked frantic rescue efforts, the second recent disaster to underscore the vulnerability of those living in the Himalayas to the effects of extreme weather. At least 46 people have died and more than 200 are missing in the town of Chashoti, a popular pilgrimage destination for Hindu tourists, Reuters reported citing local officials. Flash floods caused by the rain turned roads into raging rivers while the downpour devastated entire buildings and swept away vehicles, dramatic video shared on social media showed. A wall of water, mud and debris could be seen rolling down the mountainside, one of the videos showed. Rescue operations are ongoing with army and police personnel working to find those missing. 'The news is grim & accurate,' Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah wrote in a social media post. 'All possible resources are being mobilised from within & beyond J&K to manage the rescue operations.' Some of the rescued people have been taken to hospitals. India's Meteorological Department said the rainfall was due to a 'cloudburst,' which is a sudden and heavy downpour of over 100 mm (4 inches) of rain in just one hour. It can trigger sudden floods, landslides, and devastation, especially in mountainous regions during the monsoon. Earlier this month, another surge of flood water tore through a mountainous village in the Himalayas in India's northern Uttarakhand state, leaving at least four people dead. Abdullah said he has cancelled some events that had been planned to celebrate the anniversary of India's independence from Britain on Friday. Thursday's floods washed away a community kitchen and security post at a pit stop along the pilgrimage route, Reuters reported citing a local official who declined to be named because he was not authorized to speak to the media. 'A large number of pilgrims had gathered for lunch and they were washed away,' the official said. The Machail yatra is a popular pilgrimage to the high altitude Himalayan shrine of Machail Mata, one of the manifestations of Goddess Durga, and pilgrims trek to the temple from Chasoti, where the road for vehicles ends. The disaster occurred at 11:30am local time, Ramesh Kumar, the divisional commissioner of Kishtwar district, told news agency ANI, adding that local police and disaster response officials had reached the scene. 'Army, air force teams have also been activated. Search and rescue operations are underway,' Kumar said.
The Guardian
a day ago
- Climate
- The Guardian
Flash flood in Indian Kashmir leaves dozens dead and at least 200 missing
At least 37 people have died and more than 200 are missing after a sudden rainstorm in Indian Kashmir, the second such disaster in the Himalayas in a little over a week. The incident in the town of Chashoti, Kishtwar district, occurred at a stopover point on a pilgrimage route. Days earlier, a flood and mudslide engulfed a village in the Himalayan state of Uttarakhand. The flood washed away a community kitchen and a security post in the village, a pit stop along the pilgrimage route to the Machail Mata temple, according to an official. 'A large number of pilgrims had gathered for lunch and they were washed away,' they said. The Machail Yatra trail is a popular route up to the high-altitude Himalayan shrine of Machail Mata, which honours the Hindu goddess Durga, and pilgrims trek to the temple from Chashoti, where the road for vehicles ends. 'The news is grim and accurate, verified information from the area hit by the cloudburst is slow in arriving,' said Omar Abdullah, the chief minister of India's federal territory of Jammu and Kashmir, in a post on X. Television footage showed pilgrims crying as water flooded the village. The disaster occurred at 11.30am local time, Ramesh Kumar, the divisional commissioner of Kishtwar district, told ANI news agency, adding that local police and disaster response officials had reached the scene. 'Army air force teams have also been activated. Search and rescue operations are under way,' Kumar said. A cloudburst, according to the Indian Meteorological Department, is a sudden, intense downpour of more than 100mm (4in) of rain in just one hour that can trigger sudden floods, landslides and devastation, especially in mountainous regions during the monsoon. The local weather office in Srinagar predicted intense showers for several regions in Kashmir on Thursday, including Kishtwar. It urged residents to stay away from loose structures, electric poles and old trees as there was a possibility of mudslides and flash floods.
The Guardian
a day ago
- Climate
- The Guardian
Dozens dead and hundreds missing after cloudburst triggers flood in Kashmir
At least 34 people died and more than 200 were missing after heavy rain caused a flash flood in Indian Kashmir, officials said on Thursday. The incident occurred in the town of Chashoti in Kishtwar district, a stopover point on a pilgrimage rout up to the Himalayan shrine of Machail Mata. Many of those washed away by the sudden cloudburst are thought to be pilgrims who were about to trek to the temple
