Uttarakhand Cloudburst: Toll Rises To 14 As Several Still Trapped In Kedarnath, Check IMD Alert

As Uttarakhand reels under cloudburst after heavy rainfall, the rescue operations continued overnight at the Kedarnath route. The IMD has predicted more showers in the state.

The IAF deployed Chinook and MI17 helicopters on Friday and joined the rescue operations to evacuate over 500 pilgrims stranded on the rain-ravaged trek route to Kedarnath, with 10 of them being airlifted in the first round.

Source : PTI

Uttarakhand Cloudburst: The ongoing search and rescue operations in Uttarakhand following a cloudburst on the Kedarnath Yatra route continued overnight to rescue the stranded pilgrims. As a part of the ongoing operations, SDRF rescued several pilgrims who were stranded due to heavy rainfall and cloudburst on the Yatra route.

The Indian Air Force (IAF) joined the rescue operations in Uttarakhand to evacuate over 500 pilgrims. The IAF deployed Chinook and MI17 helicopters on Friday and joined the rescue operations to evacuate over 500 pilgrims stranded on the rain-ravaged trek route to Kedarnath, with 10 of them being airlifted in the first round.

The route suffered extensive damage as a result of a cloudburst in Junglechatti near Lincholi on Wednesday night. At least 14 people lost their lives and 10 others were injured in heavy overnight rains that triggered flooding and a house collapse as several rivers swelled in the state.

As the state reels under cloudburst, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) issued an orange alert for August 2 and 3, predicting very heavy rainfall.

Here Are Top Updates

1. Following the recent cloud burst, the IAF undertook simultaneous HADR operations in Wayanad and Uttarakhand hills and positioned IAF Chinook and Mi-17V5 helicopters at Gaucher.
2. To speed up the search and rescue operations, NDRF teams were actively deployed to provide relief material to the stranded pilgrims.
3. Ten pilgrims were airlifted by MI17 helicopter on Friday morning and dropped at Gauchar airstrip, officials here said. Two helpline numbers -- 7579257572 and 01364-233387 -- and one emergency number 112 have also been issued by the district administration to help people get information about their stranded kin among the pilgrims, they said.
4. The pilgrims had got stranded beyond Bhimbali along Gaurikund-Kedarnath trek route when a 20-25 metre stretch of the road was washed out by the violent currents of the Mandakini on Wednesday night.
5. The trek route to the Himalayan temple is blocked by boulders at Ghoraparav, Lincholi, Badi Lincholi and Bhimbali. However, the stranded pilgrims are safe, officials said. About 5,000 food packets have been distributed among them.
6. The yatra to Kedarnath has been put on hold for the time being, with an advisory of the district administration asking pilgrims to wait wherever they are till the route is cleared of debris and restored.
7. So far, 425 pilgrims have been brought to safety in helicopters from Lincholi and Bhimbali, while 1,100 pilgrims have reached Sonprayag on foot from various places with the help of rescue teams, news agency PTI reported, citing police officials.
8. Officials said 14 people have died in rain-related incidents since Wednesday evening -- four in Dehradun, six in Haridwar, three in Tehri and one in Chamoli.
9. Aerial and surface rescue operations by NDRF and SDRF personnel on Thursday had led to the safe evacuation of more than 3,000 pilgrims.
10. Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami has requested External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar to facilitate the return of over 24 people of the state who were "forced" into working at call centres in Myanmar. In his phone call to Jaishankar on Thursday, Dhami said more than 15 men and nine women of Uttarakhand have been "kidnapped and forced" to work at call centers in Myanmar.
11. According to information received from the State Emergency Operation Centre here, a child was swept away in a flooded drain in Nainitial's Haldwani. It said a search was on to find him, as reported by PTI.
12. Due to heavy rains on Wednesday night, a stretch of road was washed away in Bhimbali on the Gaurikund-Kedarnath trek route with big stones coming down from the hill and blocking the road.