-
Not Synced
REPORTER: We start with the latest on our
breaking news, India fearing dozens
-
Not Synced
of people are dead after part of a
Himalayan glacier collapsed.
-
Not Synced
It has sent a torrent of water rushing
down a river where a hydroelectric
-
Not Synced
power station and several villages are
positioned.
-
Not Synced
Several communities have been put
on high alert for flooding, and people
-
Not Synced
are being evacuated further downstream.
-
Not Synced
We have a look at it on the map, we're
talking very Northern parts of India here,
-
Not Synced
up through close to the
Himalayas, obviously.
-
Not Synced
This is Rishiganga, which is one of the
rivers which have been affected.
-
Not Synced
And as the map swings around you'll get
an idea, first of all, of the proximity of
-
Not Synced
the Himalayas there from where the
glacier has broken off,
-
Not Synced
and then as you come down the Rishiganga
River, we find, uh, one smaller dam there,
-
Not Synced
and then further down a large
hydroelectric project further downstream
-
Not Synced
in one of the other rivers, I've just lost
it at the moment-- no, there it is.
-
Not Synced
Uh, coming down here as well, the
Tapovan Mandir.
-
Not Synced
So, a lot of villagers and, as we said,
two big hydroelectric projects are in
-
Not Synced
the path of all of that water.
-
Not Synced
Elizabeth Puranam is our correspondent
in New Delhi, she's on the line just now.
-
Not Synced
What more are you hearing this hour, Liz?
-
Not Synced
ELIZABETH: Hello Kamal, so, what we are
hearing is that this glacial burst in the
-
Not Synced
state of Uttarakhand's Chamoli
district has triggered the avalanche
-
Not Synced
of massive flooding along the
Alaknanda and Dhauliganga Rivers.
-
Not Synced
Um, it's forced the emergency evacuation
of thousands of people from surrounding
-
Not Synced
areas, damaged homes, and, um, the
nearby Rishiganga powerplant.
-
Not Synced
A local official has told Indian media
that 100 to 150 people may have been
-
Not Synced
killed in the flash floods.
-
Not Synced
Um, border patrol officials have
also told Indian media that they fear
-
Not Synced
there will be casualties because some
waterbodies flooded and destroyed many
-
Not Synced
homes on the riverbank, and we can see
pictures of a massive flood, a torrent
-
Not Synced
of water and debris moving through the
Dhauliganga River.
-
Not Synced
[unintelligible] disaster response force
has said that more than 150 laborers
-
Not Synced
working at the Rishiganga power project,
which was hit by floods, are missing.
-
Not Synced
Representatives of the power project told
disaster response that they're not able to
-
Not Synced
contact those workmen at the project
site, and the authorities are also worried
-
Not Synced
about the safety.
-
Not Synced
There are a number of ongoing road and
rail projects in the area and authorities
-
Not Synced
are worried about the safety of, um,
the laborers who are working
-
Not Synced
on those projects.
-
Not Synced
REPORTER: Any word, I know it's early days
Liz, but any word on rescue efforts?
-
Not Synced
This is a remote part of India, getting
there must be pretty difficult.
-
Not Synced
ELIZABETH: Yes, and they're very much
under way.
-
Not Synced
the state leader Pushkar Dhami tweeted
that the district administration police
-
Not Synced
department disaster management has been
ordered to deal with the disaster.
-
Not Synced
Um, we know that hundreds of Indo-Tibetan
border police personnel have been rushed
-
Not Synced
to carry out rescue operations.
-
Not Synced
Another government minister has said
that as well as the, um, hundreds of
-
Not Synced
Indian-Tibetan border police, national
disaster response force teams are
-
Not Synced
being rushed from this [unintelligible].
-
Not Synced
More are being deployed by Indian air
force, helicopter.
-
Not Synced
And an alert has also been sounded for
all downstream, uh, districts from Chamoli
-
Not Synced
including the city- major cities of
Rishikesh and Haridwar.
-
Not Synced
The people there have been warned
against visiting riverbanks.
-
Not Synced
Um, the worlds largest gathering, a
Hindu festival called Kumbh Mela
-
Not Synced
has actually been taking place in Hardiwar
over the past few weeks, this is where
-
Not Synced
people bathe in the Ganges River
during the festival, and so authorities
-
Not Synced
will be dealing with more people than
normal in and around Hardiwar
-
Not Synced
at this time.
-
Not Synced
REPORTER: Elizabeth Puranam with the
latest on this news coming out of
-
Not Synced
Northern India where a glacier has
broken off the Himalayas,
-
Not Synced
water rushing down through those valleys
in the region.
-
Not Synced
Thank you, Liz.
