16 killed as cloudbursts strike Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh

A car buried under the rubble in Shimla

A series of flash floods in Himachal Pradesh and the Union Territories of Ladakh and Jammu & Kashmir killed at least 16 people on Wednesday and damaged several residential houses, standing crops and a mini power plant, officials said.

In Kishtwar district of Jammu, a cloudburst hit a remote village around 4.30 am, leaving seven people dead and 17 others injured. A search and rescue operation by police, Army and State Disaster Response Force is underway to locate over 14 people missing at Honzar village in Dacchan tehsil, officials said.

Seven people died, two others were injured and three went missing as Lahaul-Spiti flash floods triggered by a cloudburst over Tozing Nullah in Udaipur, said Himachal Pradesh Disaster Management Director Sudesh Kumar Mokhta. Two men died in Chamba district, he added.

People remove debris after a house collapsed in Poonch, Jammu, on Wednesday. Pics/PTI

In Ladakh, two cloudbursts hit different areas of Kargil, causing damage to a mini power project, nearly a dozen residential houses and standing crops, officials said. No loss of life was reported in the cloudbursts, which struck Sangra and Khangral on Tuesday evening.

President Ram Nath Kovind condoled the loss of lives in Kishtwar district. Prime Minister Narendra Modi said the Centre is closely monitoring the situation in Kishtwar.

Meanwhile, heavy rains continued to lash various parts of Himachal Pradesh, while most parts of Jammu region have been receiving heavy rains for the past few days with the prediction of more rains until July-end. Authorities in Kishtwar have already asked people living along water bodies and slide-prone areas to remain vigilant. The Shimla Meteorological Centre has issued a ‘red' weather warning, while a MeT spokesperson said widespread intermittent rain is most likely to continue across Jammu and Kashmir until July 30.

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