Srinagar:
The Jammu and Kashmir government has sounded flood alert in the state after three days of incessant rain. Many villages have been inundated and River Jhelum has been flowing four feet above danger mark in Srinagar.
The situation is particularly grim in south Kashmir, the police and local administration have rescued dozens of people from the Kulgam district. Poonch, Rajouri and Reasi - on the Jammu side - and Kulgam and Shopian - both in the valley - have been receiving heavy rain which has affected normal life in these areas.
On Wednesday, a Border Security Force or BSF officer and five others were killed in landslides and flash floods triggered by heavy rain in the Jammu region.
BSF Inspector Mohammad Rashid of 154 Battalion was buried alive in a bunker due to landslide in Mandi Mandir area along the Line of Control or LoC in Poonch district, according to Inspector General of BSF, Jammu Frontier, Rakesh Sharma.
Some other troops, who were also present in the bunker, managed to come out of it but Rashid got stuck and was buried beneath the debris.
At least 23 villages are flooded and over 100 people rescued so far from the flood-hit regions of the state.
According to the Divisional Commissioner, a large number of houses and other buildings have been damaged in the flash floods, landslides and rains.
Authorities have deployed over a dozen of Disaster Management and rescue teams in all the districts of Jammu region and water level is being continuously monitored by the flood control rooms.