More than a hundred tourists were left stranded in north Sikkim for almost a week as rescue operations were suspended in the area due to bad weather conditions. On Thursday morning, as soon as the weather cleared, two helicopters flew for Chaten in north Sikkim from Pakyong Airport, near Gangtok. The rescue teams were able to airlift around 59 tourists on June 5.
Rescue Ops Resume In Landslide-Hit Sikkim
After a massive landslide, parts of north Sikkim became isolated this week. The bad weather made it difficult for the rescue team to carry out rescue and search operations. On Thursday morning, after the weather improved, the Army was successfully able to rescue 113 tourists stuck in the area.
According to Hindustan Times, two MI-17V5 helicopters were dispatched to Chaten in north Sikkim to airlift the stranded tourists. Onboard were NDRF personnel and Power Department experts tasked with restoring essential services in the area. The first helicopter returned with 39 tourists, while the other helped evacuate 20. Among the 59 tourists airlifted, two were foreigners.
These tourists were accommodated in hotels and at the Chaten military camp, as they waited to be shifted to safer grounds after a landslide hit north Sikkim. Helicopter sorties were suspended due to bad weather in the region, causing delays in evacuations.
Several media reports revealed that three Army personnel were killed and six went missing after landslides hit a military camp at Chaten on Sunday. Many were also injured in the incident.
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Search Efforts For Missing People Resume
According to Hindustan Times’s report, relief operations in north Sikkim were hampered after two key bridges over the Taran Chu river, situated between Munshithang and Chaten, were washed away by heavy rainfall in the area. All motorable access to Chaten from Lachen was severed.
About three days ago, 1,678 tourists were rescued from Lachung and Chungthang, and 33 were airlifted. Due to bad weather, all search and rescue operations were suspended. As the weather improved, search operations for the six missing personnel have also resumed in the area.
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More details about the rescue operations are awaited.
Image Courtesy: X/@DefenceLover01 & Canva Pro/milehightraveler
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