Flash floods kill 113 in India's Ladakh

2 hours 39 mins ago

Sheikh Mushtaq

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Overnight flash floods killed at least 113 people around the main town of India's Himalayan region of Ladakh, officials said on Friday, and soldiers have been dispatched for rescue operations.Skip related content

The region borders Pakistan, where the worst floods in 80 years have swept through the country, killing over 1,600, devastating the lives of 12 million people and dealing a blow to the agrarian-based economy.

Indian officials said dozens of people were missing after the floods, triggered by heavy rains, sent mudslides tumbling down on houses, telephone towers and government buildings in Leh town -- in the state of Jammu and Kashmir.

Witnesses said hundreds of houses, government buildings and the main bus station were flattened. Sections of the main highway were washed away, cutting off the Buddhist-dominated region.

"Flashfloods and mudslides caught people unawares during the night and washed away their homes," said Nawang Rigzin Jora, Kashmir's tourism minister.

An army spokesman said more than 6,000 Indian soldiers were conducting rescue and relief work in the region, which also shares borders with China.

"So far several hundred have been rescued by the army, 270 civilian causalities have been admitted in the army hospital," a defence ministry statement said.

Many tourists -- who travel to the region for adventure sports such as white water rafting -- were stranded.

Leh town, dotted with Buddhist monasteries, lies at an altitude of 3,505 metres (11,499 feet).

"Sheets of water poured in after the cloudburst last night, washing away mud and stone structures that came in its way," a police spokesman said by telephone from Leh. (Additional reporting by Ashok Pahalwan; Editing by Rina Chandran and Ron Popeski)

http://uk.news.yahoo.com/22/20100806/twl-uk-india-floods-bcd57bf.html