A cloudburst in Dehradun triggered by heavy rain washed away cars and shops and resulted in the deaths of four people. Rescue personnel are on alert amid the inclement weather.
Four people were killed as heavy rain triggered a cloudburst in Dehradun in the wee hours of Tuesday, destroying houses, damaging a bridge and washing away cars and shops, an official said.
The cloudburst occurred late at night and the district administration shifted the affected people to safer areas. The casualties were confirmed by Disaster Secretary Vinod Kumar Suman.
Earlier, two people went missing following the cloudburst and their bodies were found after a search operation by the rescue personnel. The Disaster Management Department is on alert due to heavy rain.
On receiving news about the incident, District Magistrate Savin Bansal, Sub Divisional Magistrate (SDM) Kumkum Joshi and other officials rushed to the spot to ascertain the damage. He directed the rescue authorities to search and rescue the two missing persons at the earliest.
Officials from the NDRF, SDRF, PWD and other officials are working on war footing with bulldozers at the spot.
All schools from Class 1 to 12 in Dehradun are currently shut in view of the heavy rain and cloudburst, according to an order issued by the District Magistrate.
Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami said he was in constant touch with the local administration and monitoring the situation. He also visited the affected areas along with his ministers and administration officials.
According to the Chief Minister’s office, Dhami briefed Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah about the situation in Dehradun and that the Centre has assured further assistance.
“Some shops have been damaged due to heavy rain in Sahastradhara, Dehradun, late last night. District administration, SDRF, and police have reached the spot and are engaged in relief and rescue operations. I am constantly in touch with the local administration in this regard and am personally monitoring the situation,” he tweeted in Hindi.
Several areas across Dehradun, including IT Park and Premnagar, were submerged amid heavy rain. The inclement weather also damaged a bridge on the Dehradun-Haridwar National Highway.
At least 200 students were trapped amid waterlogging at Dev Bhoomi Institute Ponda on Dehradun-Vikasnagar road and were rescued, the SDRF said. The NDRF rescued a person trapped on an electicity pole in the river Tons.
Following the Dehradun cloudburst, the river Chandrabhaga in Rishikesh has been in spate since morning. Three people were trapped in the river as its water flooded the highway. They were rescued by the SDRF team.
Earlier, a massive landslide occurred on a road in Pithoragarh district, resulting in massive traffic as the stretch was cut off. The administration is engaged in efforts to open the road at the earliest.
MONSOON MAYHEM IN UTTARAKHAND
Heavy spells of rain, cloudbursts and landslides have ravaged various parts of Uttarakhand this monsoon, including Dharali-Harsil in Uttarkashi, Tharali in Chamoli, Chenagad in Rudraprayag, Sainji in Pauri, Kapkot in Bageshwar and parts of Nainital district.
According to an official estimate, natural disasters in Uttarakhand since April this year have so far claimed 85 lives, injured 128 people and left 94 missing.
On September 11, Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Dehradun to review relief and rescue operations in the disaster-ravaged parts of Uttarakhand. He announced a financial relief package of Rs 1,200 crore for the affected areas.
Apart from this, further assistance will also be considered based on the recommendations of the inter-ministerial team which visited the affected areas of the state recently to assess the extent of damage caused by the natural calamities.
PM Modi also announced a compensation of Rs 2 lakh for the families of the victims and Rs 50,000 for those left injured in a series of natural calamities that hit various districts of the hill state this monsoon.
