Srinagar/ Jammu: Authorities on Saturday sounded a flood alert in central Kashmir even as three deaths were reported in rain-related mishaps in the Jammu region of the state. Srinagar-bound traffic on the Jammu-Srinagar high was suspended due to the lurking threat of floods in the Valley, leaving hundreds of commuters stranded, officials said.
The Amarnath Yatra was halted again as both Pahalgam and Baltal routes were slippery because of the rain, a spokesperson of the Shri Amarnath Shrine Board said. But the weather showed improvement later in the day in both regions of Jammu and Kashmir.
Intermittent rains since Friday night led to the flood alert in central Kashmir, but water levels had already started receding in the southern part of the Valley. The authorities had on Friday issued a flood alert in south Kashmir.
On Saturday, they put out an alert for low-lying areas in central Kashmir, including the summer capital Srinagar, and asked people to remain prepared for evacuation. Schools across the Valley were closed on Saturday.
In the Jammu region, three persons were killed and nearly a dozen houses damaged in rain-related mishaps since Friday, officials said. Harbans Lal (45) was washed away by a flash flood in a stream near his house in Natulphal village in Akhnoor sector this afternoon. A 22-year-old man, Anzar Ahmad, died in a similar case in the Surankote area of Poonch district.