Woman washed away in flooded canal as heavy rains lash U'khand

A woman has gone missing after being swept away in a flooded canal today in Pauri district as heavy rains lashed various parts of Uttarakhand, triggering landslides and rivers flowing in spate.

Flooded by incessant rains over the past 11 hours, the waters of Paniyali canal washed away a portion of a house located on its banks in Ampadav area of Kotdwar, Sub-Divisional Magistrate Kamlesh Mehta said.

The strong currents swept away a woman who lived in the house, he said, adding that a search operation was on to find her.

The woman had sent her husband along with their four children to a safe location but she could not leave the house in the nick of time, he said.

The waters of Paniyali canal have gushed into houses in Ampadav, Rameshnagar, Jankinagar, Pratapnagar and Suryanagar areas, he said.

Landslides blocked the Meerut-Kotdwar-Pauri national highway beyond Siddhabali for six hours, Mehta said.

The Rishikesh-Badrinath highway at Lambagad in Chamoli district was also blocked due to landslides, the Disaster management office said.

Heavy rains also lashed the state capital Dehradun. The Ganga was flowing close to the warning level in Rishikesh and Haridwar.

The rivers of Mandakini, Pindar and Alaknanda in Garhwal and Gori, Kali , Sharda and Saryu in Kumaon region are in spate due to heavy rains.

Similar weather has been predicted for most parts of the state over the next 24 hours.