Uttarakhand: 5 pilgrims on way to Kedarnath killed in landslide

At least five pilgrims died in Uttarakhand’s Rudraprayag district after their car was buried under the debris of a landslide in Tarsali under Chowki Phata, the police said on Saturday.

The victims, one of whom was from Gujarat, were on their way to Kedarnath when the incident took place on Thursday evening.

“A 60-meter portion of the Kedarnathgya highway collapsed due to heavy debris falling from the hill with boulders in Tarsali. During this, a vehicle was buried in the debris here,” police officials said.

“A vehicle buried under the debris was found on Friday, from which five bodies were recovered. One of the deceased was a Gujarat resident,” they added.

The landslide blocked the Guptkashi-Gaurikund highway triggering traffic woes on the road leading to Kedarnath. Officials say that about 60 metres of the road had been badly damaged and washed away.

Rudraprayag police said that people and passengers are facing obstruction from the police stations in the lower area.

Many districts of the state, including Rudraprayag, have been witnessing incessant rain for the last couple of days.

The Meteorological Department has issued a ‘Red’ alert and ‘Orange’ alert from August 11 to August 14 in most of the districts of Uttarakhand.

With inputs from ANI