Rains unleashes deaths and devastation: 16 killed in north India

Panchvaktra Temple submerged in swollen Beas river, in Mandi district, on Sunday. Pics/PTI

Torrential rain and strong winds triggered landslides and flash floods in several parts of north India on Sunday, with 15 people dying in separate incidents.

Heavy rain warnings have been issued for certain areas of Jammu & Kashmir, Ladakh and Himachal Pradesh. In Delhi, which recorded its highest rainfall in a single day in July since 1982, the government issued a flood warning after Haryana discharged over 1 lakh cusecs of water into the Yamuna river. Delhi received 153 mm of rain in 24 hours ending 8.30 on Sunday.

Five people were killed in landslides in Himachal Pradesh, where a red alert has been issued for seven districts.

Deaths in Uttarakhand

In neighbouring Uttarakhand, three people died on Sunday after their jeep fell into the Ganga river amid a landslide. Officials said there were 11 pilgrims from Kedarnath in the jeep. Five people have been rescued, while a search is on for three others.

Vehicles on a waterlogged road, in New Delhi. The chief minister has announced that all schools will remain closed on Monday

A couple was killed in Udham Singh Nagar district when two houses collapsed.

Two people were also killed in Jammu & Kashmir after a landslide hit a passenger bus in Doda district. A resident of Kargil was killed when a boulder rolling down a hillock hit and buried his vehicle near, officials said.

Widespread rainfall was also reported in Uttar Pradesh where a 10-year-old girl died on Sunday when a tree branch fell on the tin shed of her house in Kaushambi. In Muzaffarnagar, a woman and her six-year-old daughter were killed after the roof of their house collapsed due to heavy rain.

Rivers overflow

Heavy monsoon rains in several parts of Punjab and Haryana led to massive waterlogging and flooding in low-lying areas.

In Haryana, a flood control room has been established amid three rivers Markanda, Ghaggar and Tangri flowing close to the danger mark.

In Rajasthan, a few areas received heavy to very heavy rains while moderate to heavy rainfall occurred in many areas.

Authorities in Uttarakhand have sounded a red alert as water level was rising in all major rivers, including the Ganga, amid a forecast of more heavy showers in the next two days.

Hundreds stranded

In hill states, flash floods stranded many with about 200 people marooned in Chandratal in Himachal Pradesh's Lahaul and Spiti, and a part of the Chandigarh-Manali highway washed away by the surging waters of the Beas river. Landslides and cave-ins due to these floods have also led to villages in mountainous regions in Uttarakhand becoming inaccessible by road.

Deaths on Saturday

Lance Naik Telu Ram and Nb Sub Kuldeep Singh, the deceased soldiers. Pic/PTI

Bodies of two soldiers, who were swept away by flash floods on Saturday, were recovered in J&K's Poonch. A 17-year-old coaching student drowned after falling into a pit filled with rainwater in Rajasthan's Sikar city on Saturday, police said on Sunday. On Saturday, two people were killed and three hurt in incidents of lightning strike in Ballia, UP.

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