Heavy rainfall triggers flash floods near Dharamshala; 2 dead, 6 missing

Two people were killed while six individuals are still missing amid heavy rainfall and rising water levels, near the Manuni stream in Himachal Pradesh's Kangra district, officials said.

As per officials, the SDRF police, volunteers, and project authorities evacuated people from camping sites to a safe location near the Ambedkar building in Kaniara, providing food and water. 

"We have recovered two dead bodies. SDRF, police, SDM and the district authorities teams are at the spot. We are getting the headcount done to ascertain the no. of people missing. More details are awaited... The situation is not as grim as it is being projected... Near the Manuni stream, there is a small hydro power project. Some workers lived near it. It is a confluence point of many streams. The water level increased due to heavy rainfall, sweeping some people away... We cannot ascertain the no of people yet. The two deceased are being identified. The official number of the missing people will be out soon..." he said.

He added that a sudden surge of water, following heavy rain, flooded a residential colony within 15 minutes, causing a tragic incident.

"Based on witness accounts, after the rain, a large volume of water surged within about fifteen minutes, flooding the residential colony where people lived, leading to this incident. Determining whether it was a cloudburst or heavy rainfall in a short span is challenging, but what happened is deeply tragic. The data we've provided reflects the situation as we know it," he said.