Two women died in two separate incidents and another person went missing in a river following heavy rainfall in most parts of Uttarakhand on Friday.
According to information from the State Emergency Operations Centre, heavy rain in the afternoon in many areas of Udham Singh Nagar district in the Kumaon region caused waterlogging, leading to about 250 people being evacuated.
Schools were closed across the state on Friday after the Met office issued a ‘red’ warning for heavy rain. In view of the heavy rain alert, orders have been issued for schools to remain shut in the Champawat district on Saturday as well.
Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami reached the emergency operations centre and took stock of the situation while directing officials to remain alert.
Two women died and three others were injured in two separate incidents in the Lohaghat area of Champawat district.
District Magistrate Navneet Pandey said 58-year-old Madhavi Devi died after being buried under the debris of a cowshed that collapsed following heavy rain in the Dhorja village of Lohaghat.
He added that 60-year-old Shanti Devi died after a house was hit by landslide in the Matiyani village of Lohaghat.
Three people — two children and an elderly person — were injured in the landslide and later rescued, Pandey said.
Meanwhile, 38-year-old Gurnam Singh, who was cutting fodder in his field in the Kondha Ashraf village of Udham Singh Nagar district’s Sitarganj area, went missing after being swept away by strong currents of the Kailash river following a sudden rise in its water level.
The operations centre said heavy rainfall caused waterlogging in the Khetalsandakham village of Khatima tehsil of Udham Singh Nagar district, following which 180 people from 34 families were taken to safety.
At the same time, rainwater entered homes in the Vichua and Tukdi villages of Nanakmatta area, leading to the evacuation of 70 people.
The Kumaon region recorded heavy rainfall during the last two days. The Met department said 150 mm of rainfall was recorded in the region in 24 hours.
Snowfall was also reported in the high hills of Garhwal and Kumaon.
Intermittent rain continued in Dehradun for two days, with the Met office registering a 9.4-degree Celsius drop in day temperatures during this period.
The maximum temperature was recorded at 24.8 degrees Celsius on Friday.
The Met office had issued a warning of heavy to very heavy rain in most districts of the state for Thursday and Friday, following which a holiday was declared in schools.
Traffic on about half a dozen national highways was disrupted due to landslides caused by rain.
Chamoli District Magistrate Sandeep Tiwari said relief and rescue teams were sent after information was received about vehicles and passengers being stranded on roads blocked by landslides.
At the emergency operations centre, Dhami spoke to district magistrates on the condition of roads, and drinking water and electricity supply and instructed them to keep people safe in areas of heavy rain and landslides.
He also directed the officials to make arrangements for food and accommodation of devotees and travellers stranded due to the very heavy rain.
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