Officials say more than 140 people are missing and feared dead, after a large piece of a Himalayan glacier in northern India broke off and slammed into a dam early Sunday, flooding the Dhauli Ganga River and forcing the evacuation of the downstream villages.
Authorities say at least nine bodies have been recovered in the unfolding incident.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi posted on Twitter; “India stands with Uttarakhand and the nation prays for everyone’s safety there.”
Sanjay Singh Rana, who lives on the upper reaches of Raini village told Reuters in a telephone interview, “It came very fast, there was no time to alert anyone ... I felt that even we would be swept away.”
The government says disaster response teams are being airlifted to the area.
