Uttarakhand floods highlights: Death toll rises to 38; another flash flood from new Himalayan lake likely

Rescue agencies began drilling through the debris in the Tapovan tunnel to establish contact with the over 30 people trapped inside after a flash flood, an operation which stalled briefly Thursday when the Dhauliganga river began swelling again. The confirmed death toll in the Uttarakhand disaster rose to 37 with the recovery of two more bodies along the riverbank and 168 people remain missing since Sunday after an avalanche or a glacier break triggered a surge of water in the Alaknanda river system. Stay tuned for live updates.

SDRF reaches lake near Tapovan

NTPC sets up medical team at Tapovan site

State-run power giant NTPC on Friday said it has set up a medical team of doctors and para-medical staff and started medical camps for general public at Tapovan which was ravaged by a flash flood last Sunday.

"NTPC Tapovan team has brought in an experienced team of doctors, para-medical staff and has started medical camps for the general public at Tapovan.

"Medical consultations along with medicines for the needy has proved to be of great help for the people of the surrounding areas devastated by the disaster," an NTPC statement said.

Read More

Fears grow over another flash flood from new Himalayan lake

A newly formed Himalayan lake raised fears Friday of another flash flood above a disaster-hit valley in Uttarakhand, prompting authorities to conduct helicopter surveys and send a team on a 16-hour climb to investigate.

Thirty-six people died and 168 are still missing after a barrage of water and debris hurtled down the valley in Uttarakhandwith terrifying speed and force on Sunday, obliterating roads and bridges and smashing through dams.

Read More

Will bring another vehicle to the site for large sized-drillings, NTPC Tapovan project in-charge says

Ex-Uttarakhand CM Harish Rawat meets CM Trivendra Singh Rawat, discusses flood rescue operations

Two more bodies recovered in Chamoli

Two more bodies were recovered from the flash flood-hit areas ofUttarakhand's Chamoli district on Friday, taking the toll in the calamity to 38, as rescue teams battled on against the odds for the sixth consecutive day to get to 25-35 people trapped in a sludge-choked tunnel here.

One body was recovered from the rubble at the demolished Rishi Ganga Hydel Project in Raini and the other from Maithana, district administration officials here said.

Read More

Indian Army uses trolley to connect villages cut off after glacier burst in Chamoli

Rescue teams battle on in Tapovan

Rescue teams battled on against various odds for the sixth consecutive day on Friday to get to the over 30 people trapped inside the sludge-choked Tapovan tunnel amid fading hopes of their survival.

Uttarakhand DGP Ashok Kumar, in Dehradun, said sludge clearing and drilling operations are simultaneously underway at the tunnel to reach the smaller tunnel underneath where they may be trapped. (PTI)

We've information about a lake that has been formed near Raini village in Joshimath. Present situation suggests that we need to be cautious but nothing to worry. Scientists working on it. We're also planning to airdrop experts for review: Uttarakhand CM Trivendra Singh Rawat

(ANI)

Ration and essential items airlifted to Suki, Lata and Bhalgaun villages which are cut off following glacier burst on February 7.

Chamoli: Flood-ravaged Tapovan project in Chamoli district of Uttarakhand, Friday, February 12, 2021. Credit: PTI Photo

Flash floods due to a glacier burst on February7 at Joshimath have washed away Tapovan hydel project and claimed over 30 lives with several persons still missing.

Body recovered from the riverbank near Maithana village today. Total of 37 bodies recovered so far: District Magistrate Chamoli, Uttarakhand

(ANI)

There's a possibility that water is being accumulated above Raini village near Tapovan area. Many aerial recces have been done. An 8-member SDRF team sent today on foot to assess the situation. Further action to be taken after evaluation: Ridhim Aggarwal, DIG SDRF Uttarakhand

(ANI)

Out of the 204 missing persons, 36 bodies have been recovered. 168 persons still missing. Relief and rescue operation underway: DGP Uttarakhand Ashok Kumar

(ANI)

Today, we will try to drill and gain entry into a smaller tunnel which is 12 meters below the existing tunnel as there might be a possibility of human presence there: DGP Uttarakhand Ashok Kumar

(ANI)

We have sent a team of SDRF & NDRF for recce after we received information about the formation of a lake in the area above Raini village: DGP Uttarakhand Ashok Kumar

(ANI)

Flood-affected villagers of Bhalla gaon after receiving relief material from authorities, in Chamoli district of Uttarakhand, Friday, February 12, 2021. Credit: PTI Photo

Members of a National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) team work during a relief operation at a destroyed bridge site after a flash flood swept down a mountain valley destroying dams and bridges, in Raini village in the northern state of Uttarakhand, India, February 11, 2021. Credit: Reuters Photo

Our teams are continuously searching for bodies. A team has also been deployed to search for bodies along the river. All agencies involved in rescue operation are working round the clock: PK Tiwary NDRF Commandant, at Tapovan tunnel in Chamoli district

Rescue operation continues at Tapovan in Chamoli District on the sixth day. 36 bodies have been recovered, 204 people missing, according to the State Government

(ANI)

Uttarakhand Governor Baby Rani Maurya visits the damaged Tapovan hydel project tunnel to take the stock of the situation, in Chamoli district of Uttarakhand, Thursday, February 11, 2021. Credit: PTI Photo

Maharashtra Governor B S Koshyari denied permission to fly in govt-owned plane to Uttarakhand

The bitter tussle between the Uddhav Thackeray-led Maha Vikas Aghadi dispensation and Maharashtra Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari came out in the open yet again on Thursday when the latter was denied permission to fly in a state government plane to Dehradun.

Read more

Rising river waters delay rescue efforts

Surging waters in the Dhauliganga river on Thursday forced a brief pause on the rescue efforts to reach out to the 37 persons trapped inside a tunnel of the NTPC hydel power project Tapovan since Sunday’s flash floods triggered by an avalanche.

Read more

Rescue operation continues at damaged Tapovan hydel project tunnel, following Sunday's glacier burst at Joshimath causing a massive flood in the Dhauli Ganga river, in Chamoli district of Uttarakhand, Thursday, February 11, 2021. Credit: PTI Photo

Uttarakhand Governor faces ire of kin of those trapped inside Tapovan tunnel

Uttarakhand Governor Baby Rani Maurya had to face the ire of the families of those trapped inside a tunnel at Tapovan, when she visited the site to take stock of the rescue work.

Read more

Drilling operation at Tapovan tunnel continues; families get impatient

Authorities on Thursday began drilling inside a tunnel in Uttarakhand in an attempt to rescue more than 35 workers trapped there after a flash flood that destroyed dams and bridges.

Read more

Good morning readers, welcome to DH's live coverage of the Uttarakhand floods.