Incessant rain and bad weather are hampering rescue and relief work in Uttarakhand which was badly hit by a cloudburst and flooding killing at least 39 people, the army said yesterday.
“Rain and bad weather continues to hamper rescue and relief work. Dog squads and additional medical teams are on standby, ready to be inducted as soon as the weather permits,” the army said.
At least 14 bodies have been recovered so far from the debris in villages which were hit by rains due to the cloudburst and resultant landslide.
At least 39 people were feared dead on Friday in the flooding that hit six villages of Chamoli and Pithoragarh districts.
The road leading to the affected site remained blocked due to landslides at several places, making the task of evacuation difficult, an army spokesman said.
“The army, in co-ordination with the civil administration, has established a relief centre at Shinghali village in proximity to the affected sites,” the spokesman added.
On Friday, the army continued to operate till late at night along with the State Disaster Response Force to look for survivors.
Nine bodies were recovered during the search.
“Search operation has resumed and one more body was recovered from the debris,” said the spokesman.
More than 60 houses were flattened due to incessant rain in the region on Friday.
Officials said more than 100mm of rain was recorded in just two hours, leading to flooding of most of the rivers in the hill state.
“Rescue teams from the border police, army and disaster relief personnel are scanning the area and rubble in the villages destroyed by landslides is being cleared,” Piyush Rautela, director of the state’s disaster management division, said.
Two main highways in the region were also blocked by landslides and work was going on to clear them.
Television images showed muddy, swirling floodwaters gushing through the area, while giant boulders and rocks blocked part of a national highway.
Meanwhile in Arunachal Pradesh, which borders China, rains brought on a landslide on Friday at Bhalukpong in West Kameng district.
Several government buildings and a school were damaged by the landslide and floods and the death toll rose to 10 as more bodies were recovered yesterday from the site, local police officer A Koan said.
Hundreds die every year in floods and landslides during the monsoon season in India.
In 2013, nearly 6,000 pilgrims, tourists and others were killed by floods and landslides caused by early monsoon rains in Uttarakhand, destroying scores of villages and towns.
lModerate to heavy rain will occur at many places across the Malnad region in central Karnataka over the next 24 hours, a weather official said yesterday.
“As the southwest monsoon remains active across the state, many places in Malnad, including Shivamogga, Chikkamagaluru and Hassan districts, will receive moderate to heavy rains,” the state meteorological department said.
Rainfall in coastal districts and south interior areas will be, however, light to moderate at many places and at a few places in north interior parts of the state.
“The Western Ghats across central and southern parts will receive heavy rain due to the movement of monsoon clouds and westerly direction of strong surface winds,” the official said in Bengaluru.
Forecast for Bengaluru and its neighbourhood is cloudy sky with one or two spells of light rain, while surface winds will be stronger and gusty at times.
Heavy rainfall occurred in most places in coastal and north interior areas of the state on Friday, with Hulikal in Shivamogga district recording 12cm, followed by Bhagamandala in Kodagu district 9cm each, Kammaraddi in Chikkamagaluru district 8cm and Agumbe and Somwarpet in Kodagu district 7cm each.