The Uttarakhand police sharing the video of the landslide on X said, “The road has been blocked due to landslide from the hill near Patalganga Langsi Tunnel on Badrinath National Highway.”
Even the Chamoli police also keep updating about the road status and said that the road is still blocked.
Several people posted videos on their social media accounts showing a large portion of a hill falling onto the road and blocking the route.
A video, lasting just half a minute, captures a terrifying scene at Chungi Dhar in Joshimath. The footage shows people screaming due to panic and running for their safety. Many of them were also seen capturing the act on their phones.
The landslide left countless individuals and vehicles stranded on either side of the affected road. Earlier in the day, the Badrinath highway had been obstructed, and authorities were in the process of clearing the debris when the catastrophic event unfolded.
The heavy rainfall continued to cause widespread disruption across Uttarakhand, particularly in hill areas where landslides had blocked multiple highways.
Earlier, in Pithoragarh, 21 roads remained blocked due to rain-triggered landslides, according to the district’s disaster emergency operation centre. The Badrinath and Yamunotri highways were blocked by landslides at Pagal Nala near Lambagad in Chamoli and near Dabarkot in Uttarkashi, respectively.
In Nainital, a red alert was issued for heavy to extremely heavy rainfall in some areas, and a holiday declared for all schools and anganwadi centres on Thursday. Several areas reported moderate to heavy rainfall.
Similar conditions in Bageshwar due to continued rainfall since Tuesday led to the closure of 24 roads and there were reports of debris entering homes. Rivers and streams were reported to be overflowing, with 100 mm of rain recorded in Kapkot. The Garud Ganga river was also flowing at full force.