20 July,2026 07:34 PM IST | Poonch | mid-day online correspondent
Mendhar river flowing above the danger level following heavy rains in Poonch (Pic/PTI)
Seven people were killed when their house was struck by a landslide in the rain-hit Poonch district of Jammu and Kashmir on Monday, officials said.
As reported by PTI, the incident occurred in the higher reaches of Loran village. The house hit by the landslide was made of mud, the officials said.
They further added that the rescue operation is underway. Among the seven killed, four were women, as per PTI.
Poonch has been battered by torrential rains since Saturday evening. Seventeen people, including the seven in Loran, have been killed, and six are missing.
At least 12 people were killed and several others are missing as torrential rains unleashed landslides and flash floods across the twin border districts of Poonch and Rajouri in Jammu and Kashmir on Sunday, causing widespread damage to public and private infrastructure, including roads and houses, officials said.
The devastation prompted Chief Minister Omar Abdullah to skip National Conference's proposed statehood protest in Delhi on Monday and rush to Jammu to take stock of the emerging situation and oversee relief efforts. Abdullah reached the Civil Secretariat here at 6 pm and chaired a high-level meeting.
The worst devastation was reported from Surankote tehsil in Poonch district, where most of the fatalities occurred, while rescue teams raced against time to trace the missing persons, the officials said.
Deputy Commissioner Poonch Ashok Kumar Sharma said at least 16 persons are feared dead in the district, with bodies of nine recovered so far.
"The rescue efforts are ongoing while all measures are being taken to provide immediate relief to the affected population," Sharma, who visited various flood-hit areas during the day, told PTI on the phone.
As a weather advisory warned of moderate to heavy rainfall across Jammu and Kashmir till July 23, the border districts of Rajouri and Poonch experienced relentless rain since Saturday evening, leading to overflowing rivers and streams after a night of heavy downpour.
Rajouri MLA Ahmed, who was scheduled to participate in his party's protest in support of the restoration of statehood outside Lok Bhavan in Jammu on Sunday, returned to his hometown to assess the flood situation.
"I have abandoned my party programme to stand with my people, as the flash floods have caused extensive damage to public and private property," Ahmad said.
Chief Minister Abdullah, who was in Delhi for the proposed statehood protest on Monday, decided to cut short his stay in the national capital and returned to Jammu in the afternoon in view of the worsening situation across parts of the division following heavy rains.
(With inputs from PTI)
