Fresh Cloudburst In Himachal Pradesh, At Least 13 Dead

Samej: A fresh cloudburst near Samej and Bagi bridges in Himachal Pradesh washed away at least 45 people near Shrikhand in Himachal on Wednesday night. While the rescue operations are still underway, 13 bodies have been recovered on Thursday so far, according to reports.

Baljinder Singh, 14th Battalion Commandant, National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) said the NDRF teams were sent well-prepared to Himachal Pradesh this year to avoid any delay in the rescue operations.

“This year, the NDRF teams were sent to remote locations in Himachal Pradesh to ensure there is no delay in the rescue operations. The Samej cloudburst that has taken place is a huge disaster,” he told ANI.

The IMD has issued orange alert for Bilaspur, Hamirpur, Kangra, Chamba, and Mandi districts. “We have recorded the highest rainfall at Joginder Nagar in Mandi district at 110 mm during the past 24 hours. It is heavy rainfall, and in Sirmaur district, we have received heavy rainfall,” Kuldeep Srivastava, head of IMD Himachal Pradesh, told NDTV.

On August 7, the IMD had declared that significant rainfall was witnessed across the state. Joginder Nagar in Mandi district had experienced the highest downpour at 110 MM in 24 hours

Earlier, on the intervening night of July 31 and August 1, cloudburst had wreaked havoc in the state. A massive rescue operation is underway in Samej village due to the previous cloudburst incident, in which the toll is reportedly 8 and at least 45 people are missing. Cloudburst followed by flashfloods caused widespread destruction in Kullu, Mandi and Shimla regions also.