Five persons washed away by flash floods in Himachal Pradesh

Flash floods have reportedly drowned five tourists in the Satluj River earlier this week in Himachal Pradesh's Shimla district.

Eight tourists from Punjab were travelling through the district's Sunni area in a car and were swept away by the river's gushing waters. Three persons were rescued and a search is on for the remaining five.

Chewadi village in the district was the worst affected as almost all of its houses were washed away.

The inhabitants of the village claimed that their losses were an estimated Rs.600,000.

All road linked to the village have been cut off, and water and electricity supply, has also been disrupted. Some villages located nearby have also been affected by the floods.

"Irrigation and drinking water has been affected due to this disaster. People are not able to quench their thirst. The condition is very bad," said village head, Bheshi Lal.

The meteorological department in the state has issued an alert to expect more rainfall.