At least 40 people, including two CISF jawans, have died and over 120 have been injured after a massive cloudburst struck Chositi village in Jammu and Kashmir’s Kishtwar on Thursday, triggering flash floods and large-scale destruction. More than 220 people are missing as rescue teams race to find survivors.
The disaster hit along the route of the Machail Mata Yatra to the Himalayan shrine of Mata Chandi, leaving the pilgrimage trail in chaos. Rescue teams rushed to the scene immediately,
with large-scale operations now underway to search for survivors and evacuate those trapped.
Leader of the Opposition in the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly, Sunil Sharma, said that there were nearly 1,200 people present at the spot where the cloudburst was reported.
"There were about 1,000 to 1,200 people at the cloudburst spot," the BJP leader said.
Videos from the site show pilgrims being hurriedly evacuated from the starting point of the yatra.