Kashmir Impulse Desk
Rajouri, Aug 4
Heavy rainfall continued across Jammu and Kashmir’s Pir Panjal region on Tuesday, with a missing woman found dead in Poonch district, a landslide blocking a key road in Rajouri and emergency teams rescuing three villagers trapped by rising floodwaters, officials said.
The latest incidents come more than two weeks after flash floods and landslides killed more than 25 people in the neighbouring districts of Rajouri and Poonch, where recurring spells of heavy rain have kept residents on alert.
Police said the body of a 66-year-old woman, identified as Sarwah Begum, was recovered from a stream near her village in Poonch’s Mandi area after she had been reported missing on Monday evening.
The body was taken to a local hospital for a post-mortem examination, police said.
Investigators suspect she was swept away by flash flood waters, although the exact cause of death is being investigated.
Elsewhere, a landslide blocked the Kotranka-Khawas road in Rajouri district, stranding vehicles on both sides before road clearance teams restored traffic after several hours.
Officials said heavy machinery was deployed to remove debris from the affected stretch.
Late on Monday, rescue teams evacuated three members of a family and their livestock after they became stranded in the swollen Betar Nallah in Poonch district.
Officials said the family was in the riverbed when water levels rose suddenly following heavy rainfall.
Personnel from the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), police, civil administration and local residents carried out the rescue operation, bringing all three people and their animals to safety overnight.
Authorities have urged residents living near rivers, streams and landslide-prone areas to remain vigilant as intermittent heavy rainfall continues across the region.
