At least ten persons were killed in a cloudburst near the holy cave shrine of Amarnath in south Kashmir Himalayas on Friday evening, officials said.
#WATCH | J&K: Visuals from lower reaches of Amarnath cave where a cloud burst was reported. Rescue operation underway by NDRF, SDRF & other agencies
(Source: ITBP) pic.twitter.com/o6qsQ8S6iI
— ANI (@ANI) July 8, 2022
The cloudburst which struck at around 5.30 pm amid heavy rainfall triggered a flash flood that also damaged 25 tents and three community kitchens set up for the pilgrims.
Anguished by the cloud burst near Shree Amarnath cave. Condolences to the bereaved families. Spoke to @manojsinha_ Ji and took stock of the situation. Rescue and relief operations are underway. All possible assistance is being provided to the affected.
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) July 8, 2022
IGP Kashmir Vijay Kumar has informed that the injured are being airlifted for treatment. Rescue operations by the national and state disaster response teams and other agencies are underway.
बाबा अमरनाथ जी की गुफा के पास बादल फटने से आयी फ्लैश फ्लड के संबंध में मैंने LG श्री @manojsinha_ जी से बात कर स्थिति की जानकारी ली है। NDRF, CRPF, BSF और स्थानीय प्रशासन बचाव कार्य में लगे हैं। लोगों की जान बचाना हमारी प्राथमिकता है। सभी श्रद्धालुओं की कुशलता की कामना करता हूँ।
— Amit Shah (@AmitShah) July 8, 2022
According to the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) officials, the cloudburst occurred at the lower Amarnath cave and the water came from above and sides of the cave after it rained heavily in the upper reaches. The rain has stopped for now.
The police said the situation was under control.
The annual 43-day yatra commenced from the twin base camps — traditional 48-km Nunwan-Pahalgam in south Kashmir's Anantnag and 14-km shorter Baltal in central Kashmir's Ganderbal — on June 30.
Earlier, landslides triggered by heavy rain in Ramban district early on Friday morning had caused one-way traffic movement on the Jammu-Srinagar National Highway to remain suspended for several hours.
