48 missing in Himachal cloudbursts, relatives search for bodies 80 km away in Sutlej dam

Heavy rains wreaked havoc in Himachal Pradesh post-midnight on Wednesday (July 31, 2024), causing widespread destruction across the state. Cloudbursts at six locations led to severe flooding, resulting in the deaths of five persons, with 48 others still missing.

The missing include 36 villagers from Samej (Rampur subdivision of Shimla district), five from Bagipul (Nirmand in Kullu district) and seven from Rajban (Mandi district).

After failing to find the bodies near the cloudburst sites, the relatives of those missing have begun the search in the Sutlej. They expect the bodies may come floating in the river and the search is being conducted in Sunni-Tattapani area, about 85 km from Shimla, where a power project dam has been built.

This area is a crucial search point because in incidents like cloudbursts and flashfloods in the catchment areas of the Sutlej, 90 per cent of the bodies are typically found at the Kol dam site near Dogri village, located on the border of Shimla and Mandi districts.

The search operation in Sunni-Tattapani began on Thursday afternoon, which was led by Shimla Additional Deputy Commissioner Abhishek Verma. The team includes DSP Amit Thakur and more than 30 police officers and employees from the district administration. They are diligently searching the area where the dam and river water converge, hoping to recover the bodies of those who went missing in the cloudbursts.

The cloudbursts affected several areas, including Nain Sarovar, Bhimdwari and Malana in Kullu district, Rajban in Mandi, Rajnagar in Chamba and Jahalma in Lahaul. The floodwaters caused extensive damage, washing away 47 houses, 10 shops, 17 bridges, three schools, a dispensary, a bus stand, 30 vehicles, two power projects and a dam.

Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu is expected to visit the affected areas, meet with local residents and families of the missing and assess the situation.