Over 100 killed in Leh floods
Leh/New Delhi: More than 100 people have been killed and over 350 injured while an unspecified number went missing in flash floods, triggered by a cloudburst on Thursday night in Leh town of the Ladakh region in Jammu and Kashmir.
More than 100 bodies were counted, officials said while many are lying trapped inside debris it is feared.
At least 25 Army jawans were reported missing.
The injured have been shifted to the local Army base hospital even as many injured could not be rescued immediately after they got trapped under collapsed buildings.
Indian Air Force helicopters have been pressed into rescue and relief operations as all major roads have been blocked due to landslides or debris and water.
Helicopters have been kept on stand by at Kargil, Thoise and Chandigarh.
A series of cloudbursts in this Himalayan pocket prompted the floods. The cloudbursts hit Choglumsar area, 13 kilometres from Leh and 424 kilometres from Srinagar.
The city’s main hospital, SNM Hospital, was flooded, while a CRPF camp, a BSNL office and the city's main bus stand were damaged.
The Defence Institute of High Altitude Research of DRDO has also been damaged.
The Leh airport, which was filled with water, mud and debris since Thursday night forcing suspension of all operations, is being made operational at a war-footing.
The army is currently helping with the rescue mission. However, rescue works have been hindered as the Leh-Manali highway is closed due to landslides.
The Kargil route is also disconnected because a bridge was damaged in Nimo.
In New Delhi, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, expressing grief over the loss of life and property in the flash floods, announced an ex-gratia of Rs1 lakh each to the kin of the deceased. Those seriously injured will receive Rs 50,000 out of the PM’s national relief fund.
“The prime minister is grieved to learn about the loss of life and property in the flash floods which hit Leh after a cloud burst last night,” a PMO statement said.
Defence minister AK Antony is monitoring the rescue and relief operations and had held a series of meetings with senior officials of the ministry and armed forces.
A cloudburst is an extreme form of rainfall, sometimes mixed with hail and thunder, which normally lasts no longer than a few minutes but is capable of creating flood conditions.
Cloudbursts descend from very high clouds, sometimes with tops above 15 kilometres. Meteorologists say the rain from a cloudburst is usually of the shower type with a fall rate equal to or greater than 100mm (3.94 inches) per hour.
During a cloudburst, more than 2cm of rain may fall in a few minutes.
Leh/New Delhi: More than 100 people have been killed and over 350 injured while an unspecified number went missing in flash floods, triggered by a cloudburst on Thursday night in Leh town of the Ladakh region in Jammu and Kashmir. More than 100 bodies were counted, officials said while many are...
Leh/New Delhi: More than 100 people have been killed and over 350 injured while an unspecified number went missing in flash floods, triggered by a cloudburst on Thursday night in Leh town of the Ladakh region in Jammu and Kashmir.
More than 100 bodies were counted, officials said while many are lying trapped inside debris it is feared.
At least 25 Army jawans were reported missing.
The injured have been shifted to the local Army base hospital even as many injured could not be rescued immediately after they got trapped under collapsed buildings.
Indian Air Force helicopters have been pressed into rescue and relief operations as all major roads have been blocked due to landslides or debris and water.
Helicopters have been kept on stand by at Kargil, Thoise and Chandigarh.
A series of cloudbursts in this Himalayan pocket prompted the floods. The cloudbursts hit Choglumsar area, 13 kilometres from Leh and 424 kilometres from Srinagar.
The city’s main hospital, SNM Hospital, was flooded, while a CRPF camp, a BSNL office and the city's main bus stand were damaged.
The Defence Institute of High Altitude Research of DRDO has also been damaged.
The Leh airport, which was filled with water, mud and debris since Thursday night forcing suspension of all operations, is being made operational at a war-footing.
The army is currently helping with the rescue mission. However, rescue works have been hindered as the Leh-Manali highway is closed due to landslides.
The Kargil route is also disconnected because a bridge was damaged in Nimo.
In New Delhi, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, expressing grief over the loss of life and property in the flash floods, announced an ex-gratia of Rs1 lakh each to the kin of the deceased. Those seriously injured will receive Rs 50,000 out of the PM’s national relief fund.
“The prime minister is grieved to learn about the loss of life and property in the flash floods which hit Leh after a cloud burst last night,” a PMO statement said.
Defence minister AK Antony is monitoring the rescue and relief operations and had held a series of meetings with senior officials of the ministry and armed forces.
A cloudburst is an extreme form of rainfall, sometimes mixed with hail and thunder, which normally lasts no longer than a few minutes but is capable of creating flood conditions.
Cloudbursts descend from very high clouds, sometimes with tops above 15 kilometres. Meteorologists say the rain from a cloudburst is usually of the shower type with a fall rate equal to or greater than 100mm (3.94 inches) per hour.
During a cloudburst, more than 2cm of rain may fall in a few minutes.
Leave a Comment