Cloudburst in Dehradun’s Sahastradhara: Two Missing, Shops Washed Away

A cloudburst triggered heavy rainfall in Dehradun’s Sahastradhara area early Tuesday, leaving two people missing and sweeping away several shops. The downpour damaged key roads, including stretches of the Dehradun–Mussoorie route, while rising water levels were reported across the city.

District magistrate Savin Bansal said rescue teams from the National Disaster Response Force, State Disaster Response Force, and Public Works Department had been deployed. “Some shops were washed away, and two people are missing. Search efforts are underway,” he said, adding that all departments under the Incident Response System (IRS) had been activated following a weather office alert.

Senior superintendent of police Ajai Singh said several routes were hit by landslides and flooding. Traffic on the Dehradun–Haridwar highway was diverted via Bhaniyawala and Nepali Farm after a culvert in Laltappar was damaged. “We appeal to people to stay away from rivers and streams as water levels are rising rapidly,” Singh said.

Waterlogging was also reported from several parts of the city, and officials warned of more disruption as heavy rainfall continued across Uttarakhand. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has predicted above-normal rainfall in September and cautioned of episodic cloudbursts, landslides, and mudslides in the Himalayan states.

The latest disaster follows one of the wettest Augusts since 2001, when heavy rains triggered floods, landslides, and road cave-ins across Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, and Punjab. Northwest India recorded 265 mm of rain last month, the highest August rainfall in more than two decades.