Eyewitnesses recall Uttarkashi cloudburst tragedy: ‘Never seen such horrific scene in life’

Many houses and hotels were completely swamped by debris due to floodwaters (Image: Screengrab/X)

Flash floods triggered by a cloudburst led to massive destruction in the Himalayan village of Dharali on Tuesday -- wiping out everything that came in the way.

Videos shared across social media platforms showed five to ten-metre high waves leaving a trail of destruction behind. Many houses and hotels were completely swamped by debris due to floodwaters.

Sixty-year-old Subhash Chandra Semwal, a resident of Mukhba village (located in front of Dharali) and an eyewitness, said that he had never seen such a horrific scene in his life. He said that in the afternoon, he heard the sound of water and stones flowing at a high speed, following which he and other members of his family came out.

"When we saw a huge amount of water flowing down in Kheer Ganga, we all panicked. Then we blew whistles to alert the people living in Dharali market and shouted at them to run away from there," he said, according to news agency PTI.

The flash floods resulted in at least four deaths and 60-70 people being trapped with the rescue operations currently underway. Dharali is the main stopover on way to Gangotri, the origin of the Ganges, and home to many hotels, restaurants and home stays.

Suman Semwal, who works in Uttarkashi town, said he called up his father who lives in Mukhba immediately after disturbing visuals appeared from Dharali. His father, Ramesh Chandra, said that they tried everything to alert the villagers.

“He was with those who shot the video. The village is around 500 metres uphill and they were safe. When they heard a rumbling noise from Kheer Ganga, they switched on their cameras. What they saw was on an unimaginable scale. Then came a rush of water, with high velocity, and later debris. They tried to scream, but could not make themselves heard. Then they whistled, and hearing the noise, people tried to run to safety, but several were swept away,” Semwal was quoted as saying by The Indian Express.

“The people couldn’t comprehend what was happening. The flood waters struck them in 15 seconds.”

On receiving the information about the disaster, the Army reached the spot first and immediately started relief and rescue operations.

Arunav Nautiyal, a hotelier from Uttarkashi, told the publication that a cloud burst was unlikely as it did not rain enough. He also stated that he has been unable to get in touch with his friend Gaurav, who lives in Harsil. “After the Dharali floods, I called him, and he seemed fine. But soon after, the flood struck Harsil as well. I have not been able to talk to him since,” he said, according to The Indian Express.