Jammu, Aug 1: 19 missing persons continued to remain untraceable in Honzar village in Kishtwar, even on the fifth day on Sunday though the searches were intensified with the help of sniffer dogs.
The officials, who were monitoring the rescue operation, told Greater Kashmir that the things were becoming difficult because the huge boulders and debris could not be removed using human resources only.
“This was the reason; we had engaged sniffer dogs in the rescue operation. However, five days have passed but we have not been able to trace any of the missing persons,” said the official.
The official said that NDRF, SDRF and Jammu and Kashmir Police, NGOs and locals were working in perfect coordination. But the bodies were not traceable. “The machines cannot reach here being a hilly village. Neither there is road connectivity nor have we any mobile phone communication,” he said while expressing helplessness vis-a-vis the situation there.
The official said, “We are continuing the searches even during rains.” It may be recalled here that during the intervening night of July 27 and July 28, 2021, the flash-floods triggered by cloudburst had washed away the entire village of Honzar. 7 bodies were recovered and 17 injured were evacuated from the village during rescue operations.
However, the missing 19 persons could not be traced till date. “The NGOs like Ababeel and the administration are engaged in relief work in the cloudburst-hit village,” said the official.
It was claimed by the locals that many other villages adjoining Honzar also suffered damages due to flash floods triggered by cloudburst at Kiyar besides villages in Padder.