At least 11 killed, 7 missing as flash floods cause devastation in Rajouri, Poonch districts

At least eleven people lost their lives and seven others were missing as extensive damage was caused after flash floods and landslides triggered by incessant rainfall struck the LoC regions of the Rajouri and Poonch districts on Sunday.

The Army has been called in for rescue operations as authorities intensified efforts to evacuate affected families and restore normalcy in the flood-ravaged areas.

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The administration launched an all-out rescue operation under the close watch of Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha, while Chief Minister Omar Abdullah cut short his Delhi visit to return to Jammu.

Union Home Minister Amit Shah spoke with the Lieutenant Governor of Jammu and Kashmir, Manoj Sinha, and Chief Minister Omar Abdullah regarding the situation caused by heavy rainfall and assured them of all possible assistance from the Central Government.

The Haveli and Surankote areas of Poonch district and parts of Rajori have suffered loss of life. Torrential rains and landslides have left a trail of destruction, claiming lives, inundating villages, washing away houses and vehicles. All rivers and nallahs were in spate due to heavy rain.

The worst devastation was reported from Surankote tehsil in Poonch district, where most of the fatalities occurred, while rescue teams raced against time to trace the missing amid continuing rain and damaged roads, the officials said.

A landslide triggered by torrential rains struck a house in Lower Murrah village of Surankote early Sunday, burying all eight occupants under the debris, the officials said.

While bodies of five persons, including a two-year-old boy Sofian Yasar were retrieved from the debris, a search operation was continuing to trace the remaining missing persons, the officials said.

Four members of another family were reported missing after their house was washed away by flash floods at Sangla village, reports said, adding the missing persons include Abdul Hameed, his wife Sharifa Begum, daughter Areeba and sister Manira Begum.

A 28-year-old woman, Nazia Kousar, was killed when her house collapsed in Noonabandi village. Her Husband, Mohd Hafiz, and three children, aged between two and six years, were rescued with injuries and shifted to a hospital, officials said.

Shahzaib Ahmad (22) lost his life when his house collapsed at Sanglani-Surankote, while a minor girl identified as Iram drowned in a stream at Marhote. An unidentified body of a woman was also fished out from a stream near Dhundak Lathoong bridge, officials said.

One person was killed and another critically injured following collapse of nearly half-a-dozen houses in Haveli tehsil of Poonch district, the officials said.

They said the body of a woman was also fished out from a river in Rajouri town which was hit by flash floods following incessant overnight rainfall, forcing hundreds of residents to move to safer locations as floodwaters inundated low-lying areas.

Dozens of vehicles were swept away or submerged after overflowing rivers breached their banks, causing widespread disruption, the officials said.
Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, who was camping at Delhi for tomorrow’s statehood protest of the National Conference, is flying back to Jammu to supervise the rescue and relief operations.

Omar wrote on X: “In light of the weather warning put out by the meteorological department & the seriousness of the situation unfolding across parts of Jammu division I will leave Delhi to fly to Jammu this afternoon to personally monitor the situation on the ground. The statehood protest will go ahead under the leadership of JKNC President Dr Farooq Abdullah as planned.”