23 Army jawans missing after cloudburst triggers flash flood, alert sounded; what we know so far

Twenty-three personnel of the Indian Army went missing on Wednesday morning after a cloudburst over the Lhonak Lake in north Sikkim triggered a flash flood in River Teesta in the Lachen valley. Several Army establishments in the valley were swept away due to the swelling of the river.

Visuals from the spot showed widespread damage to houses and public infrastructure in the area. Several vehicles were reportedly swept away in the flooding. A search operation has been launched to locate the missing jawans.

Some army establishments along the valley have been affected due to the flooding. The release of water from Chungthang dam also led to a sudden rise in the water level by up to 20 feet, sweeping away army vehicles parked at Bardang near Singtam area, PRO, defence, Guwahati said.

Alert sounded in neighbouring areas

The IMD office in West Bengal’s Jalpaiguri issued an alert for nearby areas following the inclement weather in north Sikkim. The River Teesta flows through Sikkim and West Bengal before entering Bangladesh. Low-lying areas such as Gazoldoba, Domohani, Mekhaliganj, Ghish and parts of Bangladesh may experience flood-like situation, it said.