Mandi: Family Swept Away While Speaking to Relatives on the Phone — Helpless Bystanders Could Only Watch

Mandi, July 2:
In a tragic incident in Pangloor village of Syanj Gram Panchayat, under Gohar subdivision of Mandi district, nine members of two families were swept away in a devastating flash flood that struck late Monday night into early Tuesday. Among them, the body of a 70-year-old woman, Devku Devi, has been recovered near Pandoh, while eight others remain missing.

Relatives of the missing, including Bheem Chand, Pushp Raj, and Tilak Raj, said they were in contact with their loved ones on the phone until as late as 2 a.m. In those final moments, the family conveyed that the situation had deteriorated rapidly and floodwaters had surrounded their home from both sides. They managed to climb onto the roof and were desperately calling for help, but a sudden surge of water engulfed the entire house, sweeping it away.

Most of the families’ farmland was in Pangloor, where they lived and practiced agriculture. They also owned a second home in Baga, where some other family members were staying at the time and thus survived. However, the flood destroyed nearly everything the affected families had. Their land included fish-rearing tanks, all of which were also carried away by the raging waters.

The missing persons have been identified as:

• Padam Dev (75)

• Jhabe Ram (50), son of the late Gokul Chand

• Parvati Devi (47), wife of Jhabe Ram

• Surmi Devi (70), wife of the late Gokul Chand

• Inder Dev (29), son of Jhabe Ram

• Umawati (27), wife of Inder Dev

• Kanika (9), daughter of Inder Dev

• Gautam (7), son of Inder Dev

Search and rescue operations are ongoing, with NDRF teams deployed to locate the missing individuals.