Rain, flash flood kill 9 in Jammu region

Rain, flash flood kill 9 in Jammu region
Archit Watts
Tribune News Service

(Left) Officials of the PWD clear the Circular road in Jammu on Thursday; and (below) a damaged autorickshaw at Indira Colony in the Janipur area. Tribune photos: Inderjeet Singh; and (right) A damaged bridge on the Bishnah road being repaired on Thursday. Tribune photo: Anand Sharma

Jammu, August 11
Heavy rain accompanied by high-velocity winds and a flash flood claimed nine lives and disrupted life in the Jammu region since last night.

Six passengers were killed when a Jammu-bound bus fell into a seasonal rivulet following a flash flood, near Mahanpur village, 5 km from Billawar tehsil of Kathua district, early today.

In another mishap, the driver of a bus, Manga Ram, was killed and some passengers were injured when the Rajouri-bound vehicle skidded off the road following heavy rain and fell into a gorge near ITI College in Sunderbani this afternoon. All the injured were admitted to the GMCH here.

Meanwhile, two other persons were killed in two incidents of house collapse in the Ban Talab and Panjtirthi areas here. The rain also badly damaged roads and uprooted trees in the city.Besides, landslides on the outskirts of the city blocked both the routes leading to Nagrota via the Manda forest and Panjirthi. The commuters had to take the Narwal route to reach Nagrota.

Though officials of the Jammu Municipal Corporation (JMC) and the PWD swung into action to clear the roads of water and debris, vehicles remained stuck in the sludge till the evening.

The power supply also remained suspended for a few hours, as a number of electricity poles were uprooted.

The situation was grim on the Circular road, where a number of vehicles were stuck in the sludge. Residents of Indira Colony in the Janipur area were among the worst-hit, as the rainwater washed away the road and entered houses.

An outer wall of the Civil Secretariat complex was also damaged due to the rain, thus blocking the flyover for a few hours. Rainwater also entered Greater Kailash police station.The rain also damaged bridges over seasonal rivulets and washed away animals in the nearby villages.

Meanwhile, Krishna Nagar residents blocked the road near GGM Science College and demanded a proper drainage system in the city. Locals said losses due to the rain to such an extent were earlier caused in 1996.

Kavinder Gupta, a former Mayor of the JMC, visited the flooded areas and said, “We are trying our best to clear the roads and remove the debris. Heavy machines have been pressed into service, but it will take some more time, as the rain has caused huge losses.” Later, Deputy Commissioner, Jammu, Sanjeev Verma visited the affected areas.

Weather fury Six passengers were killed when a Jammu-bound bus fell into a seasonal rivulet following a flash flood A bus driver was killed and some passengers were injured when the Rajouri-bound vehicle skidded off the road following heavy rain and fell into a gorge near ITI College in Sunderbani Two persons were killed in two incidents of house collapse in the Ban Talab and Panjtirthi areas