A devastating flash flood tore through Chisoti, a remote mountain village in Indian-administered Kashmir, on Thursday, leaving at least 37 people dead and scores injured.
The disaster struck after a sudden cloudburst unleashed torrents of rain in Kishtwar district, sweeping away homes, roads, and a makeshift kitchen serving more than 100 Hindu pilgrims on their way to the Machail Mata shrine. Many of those pilgrims were not registered with local authorities, making it difficult to confirm how many may still be missing.
Mohammad Irshad, a top disaster management official, confirmed that all 37 recovered bodies had been sent for identification. “We have rescued around 150 injured people, 50 of them in serious condition,” he said. The injured were rushed to nearby hospitals, with residents and soldiers joining in the rescue effort despite roads being badly damaged by days of heavy rain.
Kashmir’s Chief Minister, Omar Abdullah, called the situation “grim” and pledged full government support. Prime Minister Narendra Modi also promised “every possible assistance” to those affected.
The tragedy comes just days after another deadly flood in Uttarakhand state, where an entire Himalayan town was buried in mud. That disaster is feared to have killed more than 70 people.
Floods and landslides are common during India’s monsoon season, which runs from June to September. However, experts warn that climate change, combined with unplanned development in vulnerable regions, is making such disasters more frequent and more severe. The UN’s World Meteorological Organization has described these events as a “distress signal” of the planet’s increasingly unpredictable water cycle.
-Deeprows News
