Dehradun: At least 5,731 people lost their lives while over 2,000 suffered injuries during natural disasters, mainly triggered by flash floods and landslides, in Uttarakhand since 2000, according to data collated by the state’s disaster management department.
The data shows that flash floods and landslides caused by either heavy rainfall, cloudburst or glacial burst claimed the most number of lives in the state over the past two decades.
As many as 4,218 fatalities were reported in 2013 during the Kedarnath tragedy – the year when maximum deaths were recorded.
On an average, the state has lost 80 people to natural disasters every year – if the Kedarnath tragedy numbers are excluded.
When contacted, Piyoosh Rautela, executive director of Disaster Mitigation and Management Centre, told TOI, “Uttarakhand is located on the southern slope of the Himalayan range. So, it is considered as one of the most disaster-prone states and vulnerable to natural hazards such as earthquakes, flash floods and landslides.”
In the last decade, the state witnessed some of the worst such incidents – from the flash floods of 2010, in which more than 220 people lost their lives, to the Kedarnath tragedy in 2013, considered the worst natural disaster in the state’s history.
Pithoragarh, Chamoli, Rudraprayag and Uttarkashi districts have been the most affected districts in terms of natural disaster cases, according to the State Emergency Operation Centre.
“Excessive rainfall has been a major cause of natural disaster incidents in Uttarakhand – be it the 2010 flash floods, 2013 Kedarnath tragedy or the devastating landslide in Pithoragarh in 2016. However, last week’s flash floods in Chamoli is an exception as rainfall did not trigger the tragedy,” a senior official at the disaster management department said.
The data shows that flash floods and landslides caused by either heavy rainfall, cloudburst or glacial burst claimed the most number of lives in the state over the past two decades.
As many as 4,218 fatalities were reported in 2013 during the Kedarnath tragedy – the year when maximum deaths were recorded.
On an average, the state has lost 80 people to natural disasters every year – if the Kedarnath tragedy numbers are excluded.
When contacted, Piyoosh Rautela, executive director of Disaster Mitigation and Management Centre, told TOI, “Uttarakhand is located on the southern slope of the Himalayan range. So, it is considered as one of the most disaster-prone states and vulnerable to natural hazards such as earthquakes, flash floods and landslides.”
In the last decade, the state witnessed some of the worst such incidents – from the flash floods of 2010, in which more than 220 people lost their lives, to the Kedarnath tragedy in 2013, considered the worst natural disaster in the state’s history.
Pithoragarh, Chamoli, Rudraprayag and Uttarkashi districts have been the most affected districts in terms of natural disaster cases, according to the State Emergency Operation Centre.
“Excessive rainfall has been a major cause of natural disaster incidents in Uttarakhand – be it the 2010 flash floods, 2013 Kedarnath tragedy or the devastating landslide in Pithoragarh in 2016. However, last week’s flash floods in Chamoli is an exception as rainfall did not trigger the tragedy,” a senior official at the disaster management department said.
