Cloud burst triggers flash floods in Banihal, one dead

Banihal/Jammu, sep 2 (PTI) A man was washed away in flash floods triggered by a cloudburst in Jammu and Kashmir’s Ramban district on Monday evening, officials said.

The incident took place in the Bankoot area of Banihal tehsil, when a cloudburst caused flash floods that washed away a JCB machine along with its operator, they said.

Officials said the cloudburst hit the upper reaches of Bankoot village near Banihal, causing flash floods in the Gagarwah and Bankoot rivulets.

The flash floods also damaged the under-construction Bankoot-Gujjarnar road and swept away machinery including an L&T machine and a JCB machine, they said.

Police, local teams from Bankoot and volunteer teams rushed to the spot and launched a rescue operation. Following intense efforts, the body of the deceased was retrieved from the rivulet, they said.

The deceased was identified as 28-year-old machine helper Zahir Ahmed from the Manjoos area of Tehsil Khari. He died on the spot. Doctors confirmed his death upon arrival at the hospital, they said.

A case has been registered at the Banihal police station and further investigations have begun.

On August 26, a cloudburst had occurred in Panchayats Kumate, Dhraman, and Halla in Rajgarh tehsil, causing flash floods in the Tanger and Dadi streams, they added.

In the flash floods, three persons, including a six-year-old girl, lost their lives and the search operation to locate the remaining four people continues.