New Delhi (AFP) \u2013 The Indian army brought in sniffer dogs, drones and heavy earth-moving equipment Wednesday to search for scores missing a day after a deadly Himalayan flash flood.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
At least four people were killed and around 100 are unaccounted for — including 11 soldiers — after a wall of muddy water and debris tore down a narrow mountain valley, smashing into the town of Dharali in Uttarakhand state.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
“Additional army columns, along with army tracker dogs, drones, logistic drones, earthmoving equipment etc., have been moved… to hasten the efforts”, the army said Wednesday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Military helicopters were working to bring in “essential supplies, medicines and (for the) evacuation of the marooned”, it added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Uttarakhand State Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami said the flood was caused by an intense “cloudburst” of rain, and that rescue teams had been deployed “on a war footing”.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Videos broadcast on Indian media showed a terrifying surge of muddy water sweeping away multi-storey apartment blocks in the tourist region on Tuesday afternoon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Several people could be seen running before being engulfed by the dark waves of debris that uprooted entire buildings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Minister of State for Defence Sanjay Seth told the Press Trust of India (PTI) news agency late Tuesday that he had reports of “four deaths and around 100 people missing”.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Torrential monsoon rains continue to pour down.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
“Residents have been moved to higher reaches in view of rising water levels due to incessant rains”, the army added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Government weather forecasters said Wednesday that all major rivers in Uttarakhand were flowing above the danger mark.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Images released by the army, taken from the site after the main torrent had passed, showed a river of slow-moving mud.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A large part of the town was swamped by mud, with rescue officials estimating it was 50 feet (15 metres) deep in places, swallowing some buildings entirely.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Deadly floods and landslides are common during the monsoon season from June to September, but experts say climate change, coupled with urbanisation, is increasing their frequency and severity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The UN’s World Meteorological Organization said last year that increasingly intense floods and droughts are a “distress signal” of what is to come as climate change makes the planet’s water cycle ever more unpredictable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Expert hydrologist Manish Shrestha said the 270 mm (10 inches) of rain within 24 hours reported in the flood zone “counts as an extreme event”.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Shrestha, from the Nepal-based International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development, said such rain in mountains has a “more concentrated” impact than on flatter lowlands.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
“Such intense rainfall events are becoming increasingly common, and could be linked to climate change”, he said.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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