SDRF personnel during a search and rescue operation at a cloudburst-hit village in Uttarakhand.
Credit: PTI Photo
Lucknow: Five people were killed and many injured while several others went missing in a spate of cloudbursts that hit some villages in Rudraprayag, Chamoli, Bageshwar and Tehri districts in Uttarakhand late on Thursday night.
According to the reports, a woman died after she was buried under the debris at Tendwal village in Rudraprayag district after it was hit by a cloudburst.
At least 18 people were reportedly missing after the incident.
Another cloudburst was reported at Dewal in Chamoli district in which two people were killed. Around 20 livestock were buried under the debris, the reports said.
Two women were killed at Pousari village in Bageshwar district after a house was buried when stones and boulders came down hurtling from the hills above following a landslide triggered by a cloudburst on Friday.
A cloudburst also hit Gewali village in Tehri district late on Thursday night. No casualty was reported in the incident.
Reports said that large parts of Uttarakhand had been experiencing heavy rains since last night causing damage to the roads and triggering landslides at many places.
Reports said that several houses were buried under the debris in the affected areas and teams had been rushed to carry out relief and rescue operations. Schools have been closed in the affected regions.
Reports said that roads were blocked at several places affecting movement of vehicles. Tourists were stranded at many places and efforts were to transport them to safety.
Authorities have sounded an alert in Rudraprayag town after a rise in the water level of the Alaknanda river. Rising water posed a serious threat to the low lying areas and the residents have been advised to shift to safer places.
There were several incidents of cloudbursts in parts of Uttarakhand in the past few days. Seven people were killed in a flash flood triggered by a cloudburst at Dharali in Uttarkashi district recently.