On the fifth day of a large-scale search and rescue operation in a cloudburst-hit village in Jammu and Kashmir’s Kishtwar district, two more bodies were recovered, raising the death toll to 63. The operation, which has been ongoing since the August 14 flash floods, continues despite intermittent rain.
Rescue teams wearing rain gear are using machinery, including earth movers and sniffer dogs, to sift through debris at multiple locations. One of the bodies, a woman, was found downstream in a gorge near Kukundra village, and the other was discovered near a temple.
The flash floods, which were triggered by the cloudburst in Chisoti, the last motorable village on the way to the Machail Mata temple, left a path of destruction. A makeshift market, a community kitchen for the annual Machail Mata yatra, 16 homes, government buildings, three temples, and several vehicles were destroyed. The deceased include three CISF personnel and one Special Police Officer.
A total of 167 people have been rescued, and after a revision of the missing list, 39 people are still unaccounted for.
