Sikkim flash flood, dam breach: 5 dead, 58 people, including 22 Army men, missing

A cloud burst-induced water surge in the Lhonak Lake area in North Sikkim in the wee hours of Wednesday resulted in parts of the Sikkim Urja Dam on the Teesta River in Chungthang, the biggest hydropower project in Sikkim, being washed away which resulted in the major flooding in the downstream areas.

Sikkim and the contiguous part of West Bengal have been badly hit, a grim reminder of the disaster of 1968 with incessant rains, flash floods and landslides causing widespread damage.

The Sikkim government has declared this catastrophe as a “Disaster” under the Disaster Management Act.

Till the last report came in, the official death count in Sikkim was five as three more unidentified bodies were recovered from the Teesta Barrage area of Gajoldoba in Jalpaiguri district.

Earlier, fifty-nine people were reported missing in Sikkim, including 23 Army personnel. However, late in the evening Army sources stated that one soldier was rescued, and his condition was stable. He was under medical care. Search and rescue operations are on.

The Army personnel went missing from the camp in the Bardang area near Singtam in Sikkim. Many are reported injured. Army as well as the NDRFB have been deployed to help the civil administration in search and rescue operations. The National Highway 10, the lifeline of Sikkim has been badly damaged resulting in Sikkim being cut off.

An alternative road has been affected by landslides.

“The West Bengal government is closely working with the counterpart in Sikkim and the Army in this time of crisis,” stated West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.

Expressing concern over the flood-like situation in Bengal, Mamata Banerjee added that 10,000 people have been rescued and kept in 190 relief camps in nine districts in the southern and northern parts of the state.

She said that three unidentified bodies were found near the Teesta Barrage area in Jalpaiguri district and those could be victims from Sikkim.

“We have already rescued 10,000 people from low-lying areas in the districts. Already SDRF and NDRF teams have been alerted. I will monitor the situation 24/7 from home due to a leg injury which may require another week to recover,” Banerjee added.

“I am concerned about Kalimpong, Darjeeling and Jalpaiguri. I asked several senior ministers and IAS officers to rush there to oversee rescue and relief operations. Close vigil is being kept to ensure no loss of life in the calamity,” she maintained.

Altogether 5,800 people were evacuated in Kalimpong, Darjeeling, Jalpaiguri and Cooch Behar districts in the northern part of the state, while 5,018 others were rescued in Howrah, Hooghly, West Midnapore, Purulia and Bankura districts in the south, the Bengal government said in a statement.

“We got information of the disaster at around 3 am on Wednesday. Evacuation work commenced immediately. We are closely coordinating with our counterparts in Sikkim and the Army. Any assistance from our part we are ready to give. Control rooms have been opened. One column of the Army has been requisitioned from Kalimpong for the rescue of some stranded persons. All leave in the affected area has been cancelled. It’s an alarming situation but prompt action helped in minimising casualties. The Health department has also been instructed to ensure an adequate supply of medicines and doctors for the relief camps,” stated Banerjee, addressing media persons. The family of three stranded at Rongpo area was rescued during the later part of the day.

Meanwhile, as per the Sikkim government in the Mangan district along with parts of the Sikkim Urja Dam at Chungthang, Zeme Bridge and Ritchu Bridge have been washed away.

The drinking water supply system has been badly hit. According to Sikkim Police, more than 130 people have been rescued from the IBM area, Singtam by NDRF, Police, and fire brigade.

“At around 1 am, we were alerted by the police and asked to leave. I narrowly escaped with my grandchild, son and daughter-in-law. We could not salvage anything. In 1968 it was like this. How will we survive,” stated Meena Tamang, whose house on the banks of the Teesta in Sikkim has been washed away.

H K Dwivedi, Chief Secretary, Government of West Bengal, informed that at Present Teesta river level at Domohoni (in Jalpaiguri) is 85.18 m which is the danger level.

“Four teams of NDRF continue to be deployed presently in North Bengal. More companies of NDRF have also been dispatched to Jalpaiguri. Apart from NDRF, 7 SDRF teams are presently deployed in these 3 districts.

“14 persons (13 from Rangpo forest valley and 1 from Tarkhola) of Sangsey GP under Lava Block, Kalimpong district, situated just on the Sikkim border, are found missing. Efforts are being made by the state administration to trace them. There are 10 shelter camps in Kalimpong with 1599 persons; In Darjeeling there is 1 camp with 200 persons; In Jalpaiguri 17 camps with 3258 persons and in Cooch Behar 11 with 6572 persons. Around 2000 tourists are stranded in Sikkim and contact is being established with them and information is being shared with their families,” stated the Chief Secretary.

Anit Thapa, Executive member GTA cancelling his ongoing Kolkata tour rushed back and headed straight from the affected area. A committee has been formed by the GTA consisting of Kalimpong MLA, GTA Sabhasads, BDOs and officials of the engineering department. Schools have also been closed down in the affected area. “From Kolkata also I have been monitoring the situation. I will be staying in the affected area in Teesta. Our team has been working since the disaster struck,” stated Thapa.

“Kalimpong and Lava block are the worst affected. We are distributing all possible relief material. Once the rescue and relief operations are over then the damage assessment will be done,” stated T Balasubramanian, District Magistrate, Kalimpong.

Red and Orange rainfall warnings have been issued by the IMD for the next 48 hours in areas in Kalimpong, Darjeeling and Sikkim.