23 Army personnel missing in flash flood triggered by cloudburst in Sikkim

Flash flood in Sikkim: Several Army vehicles were washed away as the water level rose up to 15-20 feet.

At least 23 Army personnel went missing on Wednesday morning due to a flash flood in the Teesta river in Sikkim's Lachen Valley. Some Army vehicles have been submerged in the flash flood, defence sources confirmed. A search operation has been launched. The Army vehicles were parked at Bardang near Singtam when the flash flood occurred triggered by possibly a glacial lake outburst. The water level rose up to 15-20 feet high downstream washing away several buildings and structures in North Sikkim's Chungthang. A portion of NH-10 in Melli connecting Sikkim with West Bengal was washed away in the flash flood.

A flash flood alert was issued in Sikkim after the cloud burst in Singtam. Chief minister Prem Singh Tamang took stock of the flood-like situation.