At least two people were missing after overnight heavy rainfall triggered a cloudburst in Uttarakhand's Dehradun district in the early hours of Tuesday. Several structures, bikes and cars were washed away in the flooded water. Due to the rains, the Tamsa River is in spate and Tapkeshwar Mahadev temple is inundated.
Temple priest Acharya Bipin Joshi requests devotees to avoid going near the area as the Tamsa River started overflowing heavly since 5 am on Tuesday and the entire temple premises were submerged.
"This kind of situation had not taken place in a very long time... Losses have been incurred at various places... People should avoid going near rivers at this time... The sanctum sanctorum of the temple is safe... No human loss has been reported as of now," said priest.
After the cloudburst, rescue teams shifted the affected people to safer areas. Rescue and relief operations are ongoing to trace the two missing persons. District Magistrate Savin Bansal, Sub Divisional Magistrate (SDM) Kumkum Joshi and other officials rushed to the spot to ascertain the damage. He directed the rescue authorities to search and rescue the two missing persons at the earliest, according to India Today report.
The administration deployed rescue teams, including National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) and Public Works Department (PWD). All schools from Class 1 to 12 in Dehradun are currently shut in view of the heavy rain and cloudburst, according to an order issued by the District Magistrate.
The Chandrabhaga River in Rishikesh has been in spate since this morning, causing water to reach the highway. Three people stranded in the river were rescued by the SDRF team, while several vehicles remain stuck in the water, said SDRF.
A video shared by the news agency ANI shows several vehicles, mostly trucks, stranded in the flooding water. The rescue team can be seen evacuating people and motorists from the area with the help of the rope due to the heavy water current.
Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami confirmed the cloudburst in Dehradun, saying that he is in constant touch with the relief and rescue team on the ground.
"Some shops have been damaged due to heavy rains in Sahastradhara, Dehradun, late last night. District administration, SDRF, and police have reached the spot and are engaged in relief and rescue operations. I am constantly in touch with the local administration in this regard and am personally monitoring the situation," Dhami wrote on X.