Loss of lives saddening: Modi
STATE TIMES NEWS
JAMMU: The death toll in the Vaishno Devi landslide has gone up to 34 with rescuers pulling out more bodies from under the debris, officials said on Wednesday, a day after disaster struck the route to the hilltop shrine in Jammu and Kashmir’s Reasi district.
At least 20 people were injured in the landslide triggered by heavy, relentless rain and are undergoing treatment in different hospitals, officials said.
With fears that more people could be trapped, rescue teams are continuing to dig through the mounds of rubble to look for survivors. While 30 bodies were recovered from the debris, two of those injured died in hospital.
The pilgrimage to the shrine was suspended when the mountainside literally gave way and stones, boulders and rocks came hurtling down around 3 pm on Tuesday, catching people unawares.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi said his prayers are for everyone’s safety and well-being.
“The loss of lives due to a landslide on the route to the Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Temple is saddening. My thoughts are with the bereaved families. May the injured recover at the earliest. The administration is assisting all those affected,” he said in a post on X.
The landslide struck near the Inderprastha Bhojnalaya at Adhkwari, about halfway along the winding 12-km trek from Katra to the shrine.
Unrelenting, torrential rain for days together has created havoc in the Jammu region.
