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Jaiambey / Wikimedia Commons
Nanda Devi Peak.
Indian authorities launched a search operation after part of a Himalayan glacier broke, causing a massive flood of water and debris that crashed into two dams and damaged several homes.
At least nine people died and 140 disappeared.
The flooding was caused when a part of the Nanda Devi glacier broke in the Tapovan area of the northern state of Uttarakhand on Sunday morning (local time).
A video shared by officials and taken from the side of a steep hill shows a wall of water rushing towards one of the dams and breaking it into pieces with little resistance before continuing to roar downstream.
The Rishiganga hydroelectric power station on the Alaknanda river was destroyed, while the Dhauliganga hydroelectric power station on the Dhauliganga river was damaged, said Vivek Pandey, a spokesman for the paramilitary Indo-Tibetan Border Police.
Flowing from the Himalayan mountains, both rivers meet before merging with the Ganges River.
Pandey said the 12 workers trapped inside a tunnel at the Dhauliganga project were rescued and received first aid. Previously, he said there were 16 people trapped there.
Another 140 workers at the two plants were missing, Pandey said.
Surjeet Singh, a police officer, said nine bodies have so far been recovered amid intensified rescue operations.
Pandey said that skilled soldiers in mountaineering and rescue operations had been called in.
“The situation is under control and there is no need to panic,” he said.
Authorities said that when the glacier broke it sent water trapped behind it, as well as mud and other debris that fell down the mountain and other bodies of water. Many villages were evacuated when the authorities issued a notice urging people living on the banks of the Alaknanda and Dhauliganga rivers to move to safer places immediately.
There were houses that were damaged by the floods, said Ravi Bejaria, a government spokesman, although he had no details on the number and if any of the residents were injured, missing or killed.
Authorities emptied two dams downstream to prevent flood waters from reaching the cities of Haridwar and Rishikesh, where popular tourist spots on the banks of the Ganges River were closed and all boating activities stopped.
“We heard that a glacier had broken and people were afraid the water level would rise,” said Prince Chawla, a boat owner in Rishikesh. “But as of now, the water level hasn’t risen too much here.”
Uttarakhand Police Chief Ashok Kumar said officials immediately alerted residents living in the area and evacuated them to safer locations.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi in a tweet said he was “constantly monitoring the unfortunate situation.” He added: “India supports Uttarakhand and the nation prays for the safety of everyone there.”
In 2013, thousands of people died in Uttarakhand after heavy rains caused landslides and floods, razing thousands of houses and roads and cutting communication links in many parts of the state.
