30 die as incessant rains wreak havoc in Uttarakhand

DEHRADUN: Flashfloods in river Ganga and its tributaries, triggered by incessant rains, today left a trail of death and devastation across Uttarakhand killing 30 people, injuring 19 and damaging over 160 buildings.

Seven people went missing and a chopper and four vehicles were swept away as heavy rains continue to lash the state, Disaster Management authorities said here.

Rudraprayag bore the brunt of the disaster accounting for 20 casualties, they said adding two persons each were killed in Chamoli, Tehri and Uttarkashi districts, three in Dehradun and one in Almora.

A large number of structures including shrines, hotels, rest houses, commercial and residential buildings collapsed like a pack of cards in Rudraparayag district.

Seventy-three houses were totally damaged in Rudraprayag, 60 in Pithoragarh, 19 in Uttarkashi, 10 in Dehradun and one each in Tehri and Bageshwar.

Chief Minister Vijay Bahuguna, who took information from District Magistrates on the extent of damage caused by the flashfloods through video conferencing, expressed grief at the loss of lives in the calamity describing it as a "huge" one.

Rescue operations were going on on a war-footing with the help of ITBP, BSF and the Army but bad weather was proving a hindrance, he said.

Chardham and Mansarovar pilgrimages, suspended following torrential rains, would be resumed as soon as the weather improves, Bahuguna said.