Night of panic in Srinagar as residents track Jhelum levels on smartphones

Srinagar: The devastating floods of 2014 had struck Kashmir on September 6, leaving behind a trail of destruction. Eleven years later, close to the same date, Srinagar relived those fears on Wednesday night when panic gripped the city as thousands of people stayed awake, glued to their smartphones, anxiously tracking government advisories on water levels in the Jhelum. Many ventured out in the dark, making rounds of the river bunds to see for themselves how high the waters had risen.

The anxiety deepened after reports of inundation in parts of Budgam district, where a breach at Shalina caused the Jhelum to spill over. Authorities in Srinagar quickly issued an evacuation advisory for vulnerable neighbourhood.

“As a preemptive and precautionary measure, residents of Lasjan, Soiteng, Nowgam, Vyethpora, Golpora, Padshahibagh and Mehjoornagar are advised to evacuate these areas and move to safer places,” an official spokesperson said.

Through the night, social media groups, local masjids, and public announcements echoed with urgent warnings, reminding many of September 2014 when much of Srinagar was submerged.

“Nobody in our lane slept last night. We were refreshing our phones every few minutes, and some of us walked to the bund at 2 a.m. to check the water level,” said Ishfaq Ahmad, a resident of the posh Rajbagh locality.

Relief centres have since been set up to accommodate displaced residents, with nodal officers from the Srinagar administration and Srinagar Municipal Corporation deployed to coordinate arrangements. Local committees, police, and revenue staff were also pressed into service to spread word about the evacuation.

Water levels began to recede after 6 a.m. on Thursday, bringing some relief, though officials warned that the Jhelum was still flowing above the danger mark at Sangam in south Kashmir and at Munshi Bagh in Srinagar.

The scare follows three days of relentless rainfall that lashed Jammu and Kashmir, triggering flash floods, cloudbursts, and landslides. The Jammu-Srinagar national highway was blocked at multiple stretches, while dozens of homes suffered damage. On Wednesday, both the Chenab and Jhelum rivers had crossed the danger mark, intensifying fears of flooding.

Since mid-August, more than 160 people, including pilgrims to the Mata Vaishno Devi shrine, have died in cloudbursts, flash floods, and landslides across the Union Territory.

For Srinagar residents, the sleepless night brought back memories of 2014 in chilling detail. “It felt like déjà vu — the same fear, the same helplessness. The Jhelum swelling at night is something no one here can ever forget,” said Abdul Rashid, a resident of Lasjan.