Heartbreaking: ‘Just our house survived disaster, entire village washed away in front of my eyes’ : Elderly woman from Himachal’s Samej village

PTC Web Desk: The recent cloudburst in Himachal Pradesh has unleashed catastrophic destruction, sweeping away an entire village. Amidst this devastation, Anita Devi from Samej village shares a poignant account of the calamity’s impact, as shared by NDTV,

On Wednesday night, while Anita and her family were asleep, a deafening bang jolted them awake. “When we looked outside, our entire village had been swept away. We fled to the Bhagwati Kali Mata temple and spent the night there,” she recounted, tears rolling down her eyes. “Only our house survived, but everything else was gone. Now, I don’t know where to go or whom to stay with.”

Adding to the heartache, Bakhshi Ram, an elderly resident, tearfully shared his grief. “Around 14 to 15 of my family members were swept away in the flood. I got the news at 2 am while in Rampur, so I survived. When I reached here at 4 am, everything was destroyed. Now, I’m searching for my loved ones, praying someone is still alive,” he said.

As per the District Disaster Management Authority, 53 persons remain missing and six bodies have been recovered as of Saturday, following the devastating cloudburst and flash floods that ravaged Kullu, Mandi and Shimla regions.

As many as 60 houses were washed away, and several villages have suffered severe damage. Restoration efforts are underway in Rampur, where the cloudburst and subsequent floods destroyed a road connecting Rampur and Samej regions.