Cloudburst wreaks havoc in Ghansali

Tribune News Service

Mussoorie, May 28

A cloudburst wreaked havoc in Kothiyada, Seeta Kot and Veleshwar villages around the Bal Ganga region of Ghansali block in Tehri district today.

More than 200 houses and 100 cattle and sheep have been reportedly buried in mud while several roads in Ghansali and Chamyali have been blocked by debris, making rescue and search operations difficult for the Tehri district administration.

Several pilgrims on their way to Gangotri and Kedarnath have reportedly been stranded.

The reports of several cattle and sheep buried alive at Silyara Gangar, Kemra villages are also pouring in.

Brightland School at Baheda village in Ghansali was buried under debris. Fortunately, no student was injured as it was Saturday and the school was closed.

Chief Development Officer, Tehri, Dr Ahmed Iqbal had directed a team led by the SDM, Ghansali, along with a search and rescue team, to rush to the spot and try to handle the situation without delay.

According to sources, the team, led by SDM Vinod Kumar, had to travel 15 kilometres on foot as the road was damaged after the cloudburst. The team reached the affected villages after walking for two hours.

No loss of life is reported, according to sources, but several houses have been damaged and cattle have been buried alive in the mud.

Vinod Kumar said the Ghansali-Akhodi road along with the Ghansali-Budakedar road was closed due to mud strewn on the road following heavy rain, making the rescue work difficult for the district administration team.

Several vehicles were stuck in the mud and boulders. The SDM said revenue and SDRF teams were trying to assess the damage.

According to the District Information Officer D Bijalwan, no loss of life has been reported but officials will come out with confirmation only after assessing the scale of damage.

Meanwhile, residents of the affected villages have said more than dozen goats, sheep, cattle etc are believed to have been buried in the mud that entered the house. The gushing water due the cloudburst has left many homeless and several residents are taking shelter in the houses of the neighbours who have escaped its brunt.