Daijiworld Media Network - Itanagar

Itanagar, Aug 15: Five Army personnel went missing after a flash flood triggered by heavy rainfall swept away two shelters at an Army camp in Arunachal Pradesh’s Dibang Valley district, while four people were killed in a major landslide at a road construction site in Upper Subansiri district, officials said on Saturday.

According to the State Emergency Operations Centre, both incidents occurred on Friday evening.

The landslide occurred at the Keojaring-Byaching road cutting site in Upper Subansiri, where several people were reportedly trapped under the debris.

Four people — Tadu Baki, Taji Rai, Markosh Basumatari and Babul Ali — were reported dead. The body of Babul Ali has been recovered, the district disaster management officer said.

Personnel from Nacho Police Station have been deployed for search and recovery operations. Fire and Emergency Services personnel are being mobilised from Daporijo, while a State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) team will assist in the operation.

In Dibang Valley, two shelters at the 5th Grenadier’s Pasu Pani Army Camp were washed away by a flash flood caused by heavy rainfall on Friday evening.

Officials said seven Army personnel were swept away in the flood, of whom two were subsequently rescued. Five remain missing. They have been identified as Havaldar Upendar and Army personnel Kundan, Vinod, Aditya and Samunda.

Two search and rescue teams from the 5th Grenadier have been deployed to trace the missing personnel.

Teams from the 58th Battalion of the Indo-Tibetan Border Police, 62 RCC of the General Reserve Engineer Force, local volunteers and the Arunachal Pradesh Police have also been sent to assist in the search operation.

An SDRF team from Pasighat is proceeding to Anini to assist in the rescue efforts.