Amarnath cave disaster: 27-member team from Bantwal marked safe

Bantwal: The 27-member team from Bantwal in Dakshina Kannada taking part in the disaster-hit Amarnath Yatra are reportedly safe.

Flash flood triggered by a cloudburst near the Amarnath cave shrine, claimed at least 16 lives. Following this, there were apprehensions about the safety of the pilgrims from Karnataka taking part in the yatra.

Soon after the news of the disaster broke, Dantwal MLA Rajesh Naik directed officials to get in touch with the team from Bantwal. BUDA president Devdas Shetty is in constant touch with them.

Suresh Kotian, a member of the team, said that they were 28 km away from the yatra spot. He lauded the efforts of the army team engaged in the search and rescue operations. The team was hopeful that they would reach the cave shrine for Darshan tomorrow, he said.

The death toll in the flash flood triggered by a cloudburst near the Amarnath cave shrine rose to 16 on Saturday while 15,000 stranded pilgrims were shifted to the lower base camp of Panjtarni, a PTI report said quoting army officials.

Further, the report said that searches for the missing people continued, without break, after the flash flood and landslides rummaged through tents and community kitchens on Friday afternoon. Senior officials said 25 injured people have been shifted to hospitals while many people are believed to be still trapped under the debris.

(With PTI inputs)