Rescue work underway post floods in Jammu; 4 more bodies found

Jammu, Aug 28: A multiple agency operation has been underway in Jammu and Samba to rescue and rehabilitate the people whose properties were devastated in the floods.

Four more people were swept away in flash floods in the region on Thursday.

A record rainfall in the Jammu region in the past two days, has caused the deaths of 45 people, most of them in a landslide on the Vaishno Devi pilgrimage route.

On Wednesday, a let-up in showers allowed relief operations to pick pace.

“Operations to rescue and rehabilitate people, reconnect villages, and assess damages are underway across the region,” an official said.

According to officials, four bodies were recovered from flooded water channels in Jammu.

One body was pulled out of the Tawi River in Nagrota on Wednesday evening. The victim had reportedly drowned at Chak Rakwala.

Another body of an elderly man was retrieved from a nallah in Marh.

A body was recovered from waters near the border fencing in the Karkhola area of R S Pura, while another was found in the Teli Basti area of Bari Brahmana.

Men and machinery have been hard at work in low-lying areas to clear debris, mud, and stranded vehicles. Dozens of roads remain blocked due to several landslides.

Reports suggest that connectivity to nearly 50 villages has been disrupted.

More than 12,000 people have been evacuated from flood-hit areas so far.

Water level in major rivers, such as Tawi, Chenab, Basantar, Ravi, and Ujh, has receded.

Extensive damage has been reported to public infrastructure, bridges, houses, and commercial establishments.

Northern Railways, which had cancelled 58 trains to and from Jammu and Katra on Wednesday, arranged special trains to ferry over 2,000 stranded passengers from Jammu.

The death toll from the Vaishno Devi landslide in Reasi district has risen to 34 after more bodies were retrieved from the debris.

Officials said 24 bodies have been identified, 14 of them are women.

At least 20 others injured in the incident are undergoing treatment at different hospitals.

The landslide struck near Indraprastha Bhojnalaya at Ardhkuwari — around halfway on the 12-km trek from Katra to the shrine — around 3 pm on Tuesday.

In other rain-related incidents, four people died in Doda district on Tuesday.

The body of a BSF jawan was recovered from Pragwal, while another body was found in Akhnoor, but is yet to be identified.

In Lakhanpur, along the Punjab border, the body of an irrigation department employee was recovered.

On August 14, a cloudburst triggered flash floods in Chisoti — the last motorable village en route to the Machail Mata shrine in Kishtwar district — leaving behind a trail of devastation.

At least 65 people, mostly pilgrims, were killed in those floods, over 100 were injured, and 32 remain missing.