8 killed in cloudbursts in Chenab valley

Vast areas along the Batote-Kishtwar National Highway were inundated due to flash floods.

Sudden deluge: A flash flood washed away houses at Thatri village in Doda district on Thursday.

Eight people were killed and 11 others injured as multiple cloudbursts and landslides hit the Chenab Valley in the Jammu region in the past 24 hours.

A major cloudburst wreaked havoc in Doda’s Thathri area. “Six locals were buried under the rubble and slush triggered by a cloudburst that hit in the intervening night of July 19-20,” an official in Doda told The Hindu over phone.

Five of the victims were women. “All victims were asleep when the tragedy hit the area,” said the officials.

Eleven civilians were injured in the incident. “We rescued over 12 people in the night-long operation,” said the official.

The flash flood inundated the Batote-Kishtwar highway, too. Six houses, two shops and one private school building were also damaged, according to officials.

A separate cloudburst occurred on Thursday morning and flooded parts of the Gugara, Johra and Khara areas with water. Large swathes of agricultural land were also affected.

In the nearby district of Kishtwar, another cloudburst triggered flash floods in the Chichi area and killed a woman and her grandson.