Two girls drown in flash floods in J&K’s Kathua

Jammu, Jul 15 (PTI) Two girls drowned and two were rescued after being caught in a flash flood while crossing a mountain stream in Jammu and Kashmir’s Kathua district on Saturday, police said.

The girls were returning home after attending school in the remote Nangala-Machaddi area, Billawar SHO Jatinder Singh told PTI.

The accident occurred around 4.30 pm when the four girls were swept away by a strong current following heavy rain while crossing a stream on their way home, he said.

A rescue operation was immediately launched, culminating in the recovery of the bodies of Monika Devi and Radha Devi — both students of Class 6 — and the rescue of two others, the officer said.

Singh said one of the rescued girls, Archana Devi, also a student of Class 6, was referred to the sub-district hospital in Billawar for treatment.

In a tweet, Union Minister Jitendra Singh expressed condolences to the bereaved families.

“Just now spoken to DC Kathua, Rakesh Minhas, after receiving the report about the unfortunate incident My office is coordinating with the administration for all possible assistance. Meanwhile, parents, in general, are advised not to let their children venture out during inclement weather,” he said.

In another incident, a police officer said two people were trapped following a flash flood in a stream near Samroli in Udhampur district but were rescued by a joint team of police, Army, State Disaster Response Force and the Central Reserve Police Force.

In the border district of Poonch, heavy rain led to waterlogging in the Mendhar market, causing hardships to the people, especially shopkeepers.

The water entered many shops and also affected movement of traffic. PTI TAS