The death toll in the Vaishno Devi landslide has gone up to 34, officials said on Wednesday, a day after disaster struck the route on the hilltop shrine in Jammu and Kashmir's Reasi district.
At least 20 people were injured in the landslide triggered by heavy, relentless rain, the officials said.
The pilgrimage to the shrine was suspended when the mountainside literally gave way and stones, boulders and rocks came hurtling down around 3 pm on Tuesday, catching people unawares.
The landslide struck at a point about halfway along the winding 12-km trek from Katra to the shrine.
There are two routes up to the shrine. While the yatra had been suspended on the Himkoti trek route since morning, it was going on on the old route till 1.30 pm when authorities decided to suspend it till further orders in view of the torrential rain.
On Wednesday, the water level in the swollen rivers across Jammu showed signs of receding, but the flood alert mark was breached by the Jhelum in Anantnag and Srinagar, and water entered several residential areas, prompting authorities to assure residents that they are monitoring the situation and people should not panic.
Massive damage has been reported to public infrastructure, including several key bridges, private houses and commercial establishments, due to overflowing of water bodies and flash floods across the Union Territory, officials said.
Telecom services also got partially restored after remaining suspended for over 22 hours, while Chief Minister Omar Abdullah rushed to Jammu from Srinagar to personally review the situation in the region.
Relentless rains pounded Jammu and Kashmir for the fourth consecutive day on Wednesday, causing flash floods and landslides that left widespread destruction in their wake. Thousands have been evacuated from low-lying areas as rivers, including the Tawi, Chenab, and Jhelum, surged past danger levels.
Transport has been severely disrupted. At least 18 trains were cancelled due to track damage caused by flash floods in the Chakki river.
In Kishtwar’s remote Margi area, a flash flood swept away 10 houses and a bridge. No casualties were reported. Over a dozen paramilitary personnel remain trapped in floodwaters in Kathua’s Lakhanpur village, with evacuation efforts ongoing.
The Jammu region has seen unrelenting rainfall over the past 24 hours, pushing rivers like the Tawi, Chenab, Ujh, Ravi, and Basanter several feet above danger levels. In the Kashmir Valley, the Jhelum River breached the 21-foot flood-alert mark at Sangam (Anantnag) and was nearing the alert level at Ram Munshi Bagh in Srinagar.
Authorities report extensive damage to public infrastructure, including bridges, homes, and commercial buildings, as water bodies overflow and flash floods continue to surge.
Meanwhile, an IAF C-130 transport aircraft carrying relief and rescue material reached Jammu to provide aid to people affected by the landslide.
The C130 transport aircraft carrying NDRF load reached Jammu from the Hindan Air Force station in Uttar Pradesh's Ghaziabad.
Besides, helicopter assets such as Chinook, and Mi-17 V5 are on "active standby" at nearby bases in Jammu, Udhampur, Srinagar and Pathankot, the source said.
Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Wednesday questioned why Vaishno Devi pilgrims were not stopped from using the trek despite advance warnings of bad weather, as the toll in Tuesday’s landslide climbed to 32.
Speaking to reporters, Omar said, “We will have to talk about it later. When we knew about the weather, should we not have taken certain steps to save those lives? The weather warning had come to us a few days ago. Why were these people on the track? Why were they not stopped? Why were they not moved to a safe place?”
Officials said the yatra had already been suspended on the Himkoti route on Tuesday morning, but continued on the old route until 1.30 pm, when it too was halted due to heavy rain.
(With inputs from PTI)