J-K: “Looked for him, was not there… he became victim of flood,” says Pawan Kumar whose dad went missing after Kishtwar cloudburst – World News Network

Last updated: August 17, 2025 12:00 am

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Kishtwar (Jammu and Kashmir) [India], August 17 (ANI): After a sudden flash flood hit Kishtwar on August 14, a man named Somnath went missing, leaving his family in shock and grief.
His son, Pawan Kumar on Sunday said they were working at their hotel when the flood struck and had to run for safety. Later, they could not find his father, Somnath and believed he might have became the victim of the flood.
Speaking to ANI, Pawan Kumar said, “At that time, we were in the hotel we had set up, and we were serving food to the tourists who had come. After that, suddenly there was a flood. We left from there quickly, and when we looked back, nothing was left.”
He urged the government to help locate him as police search efforts continue.
“When we looked for our father, he was not there; we thought he must have come home, but he was not at home either. Then we understood that he had become a victim of the flood…The police are saying that they are looking for him, but nothing has been found so far. We would request the government to find our father as soon as possible,” he added.
Security forces have intensified rescue and relief operations in Jammu and Kashmir’s Kishtwar district, where a flash flood triggered by a cloudburst on August 14 during the Machail Mata Yatra pilgrimage left around 55 people dead.
General Officer Commanding (GOC) Counter Insurgency Force, Delta, Major General APS. Bal, said all the security forces are trying their best to rescue as many people as possible from the area affected by the cloudburst.
Highlighting the Indian Army’s rapid response, he said the army reached the site within 45 minutes of the disaster.
“…All the security forces are trying their best to rescue as many people as possible from the area affected by the cloudburst. We are also providing relief to the local people who have suffered due to this disaster… The Indian Army was the first to respond to this disaster, and they reached the spot within 45 minutes…” Major General Bal told the media on Saturday. (ANI)

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