At least 11 Indian Army personnel remain unaccounted for after a flash flood triggered by a cloudburst struck the Harsil locality of Uttarkashi district in Uttarakhand on Tuesday. As rescue operations ramped up in the area affected by the cloudburst, the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) confirmed they were aware of the event on Wednesday.
DIG Mohsin Shahidi of the NDRF said, “Eleven army soldiers are reported missing following yesterday’s flash flood in the Uttarkashi region in Harsil.” The Army is running a large-scale Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) operation in the area. The area is described as “impassable from both north and south” due to numerous road washouts and the failure of a significant bridge, which has complicated access for first responders.
उत्तराखंड के हर्षिल में बादल फटने से आई प्रलयकारी बाढ़ में सेना के 11 सैनिक लापता; एनडीआरएफ़ के डीआईजी मोहसिन शहीदी ने उत्तरकाशी में चल रहे रेस्क्यू ऑपरेशन पर ताज़ा अपडेट दिया#uttarakhandcloudburst @NDRFHQ #Harsil #Uttarkashi pic.twitter.com/L7TrZfewSH
— डीडी न्यूज़ (@DDNewsHindi) August 6, 2025
The Army has now deployed more than 225 personnel, including soldiers of infantry units and engineers. The personnel are conducting rescue, relief and an additional search under extreme conditions. Seven specialised teams are working off Reeco Radar near Tekla to attempt to trace those missing.
Search and rescue dogs have also been deployed at Harsil to search for trapped or missing persons. More canine units are arriving from Remount and Veterinary Centres to support the operation.
The Army said the region’s remoteness along with persistent rain has made the job extremely difficult, but the units are hard at work trying to bring help to the affected people and locate the missing jawans. Currently, five people have perished, 413 have been rescued, and approximately 100 people are stranded after a cloudburst triggered flash floods and landslides across the region of Uttarkashi in Uttarakhand, inflicting extensive damage to the areas of Dharali and Sukhi Top, on Tuesday, reports ANI.
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