JAMMU, July 19: At least eight people were killed and six others went missing after torrential rains triggered flash floods and landslides across the twin border districts of Poonch and Rajouri in Jammu and Kashmir on Sunday, prompting a massive rescue and relief operation by multiple agencies.
The worst-hit area was Surankote tehsil in Poonch district, where most of the casualties were reported. Rescue teams continued search operations amid persistent rainfall, damaged roads and difficult terrain.
Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha reviewed the situation in the affected districts and directed officials to ensure immediate relief and assistance to affected families. Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, who was in Delhi for the National Conference’s proposed statehood protest, announced he was cutting short his visit and returning to Jammu to personally monitor the situation.
According to officials, a landslide struck a house in Lower Murrah village of Surankote during the early hours, burying eight occupants under debris. The bodies of 60-year-old Bano Bi and two-year-old Sofian Yasar were recovered, while efforts were underway to trace the remaining six missing persons, including a woman and four children.
In another incident, 28-year-old Nazia Kousar died after her house collapsed in Noonabandi village. Her husband, Mohd Hafiz, and their three children, aged between two and six years, were rescued with injuries and shifted to hospital.
Shahzaib Ahmad (22) was killed when his house collapsed at Sanglani-Surankote, while a minor girl, Iram, drowned in a stream at Marhote. Officials also recovered the body of an unidentified woman from a stream near Dhundak Lathoong bridge.
Another person lost his life and one was critically injured after nearly half-a-dozen houses collapsed in Haveli tehsil. In Rajouri town, the body of a woman was recovered from a river after flash floods inundated low-lying areas, forcing hundreds of residents to move to safer locations.
Dozens of vehicles were swept away or submerged as overflowing rivers breached their banks, causing extensive damage to public and private property. Rescue teams, assisted by the civil administration, continued evacuations and damage assessment.
With the Meteorological Department forecasting moderate to heavy rainfall across Jammu and Kashmir till July 23, both Rajouri and Poonch witnessed relentless rain from Saturday evening, resulting in overflowing rivers and streams.
Rajouri MLA Iftkhar Ahmad, who skipped his party’s scheduled statehood protest, returned to his constituency to oversee relief efforts, saying the flash floods had caused widespread destruction.
In a post on X, Chief Minister Omar Abdullah said safeguarding lives remained the administration’s top priority and assured all possible assistance to families affected by property loss and flood damage. He also confirmed that the National Conference’s statehood protest in Delhi on July 20 would proceed under the leadership of party president Farooq Abdullah. (Agencies)
