Itanagar, June 25: Search and rescue operations intensified across Arunachal Pradesh’s Keyi Panyor district on June 25 as multiple agencies, including the Indian Air Force (IAF), State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) and police teams, stepped up efforts to trace four people who remain missing following flash floods triggered by incessant rainfall.
The flash flood struck the NEEPCO Colony area at Poosa on Wednesday morning, causing extensive damage to homes, disrupting road connectivity and triggering landslides at several locations. Authorities are simultaneously working to restore access to affected areas by clearing roads blocked by debris, sludge and boulders.
Disaster Management Secretary Dani Sulu said rescue teams resumed operations early on Thursday despite difficult terrain and widespread road blockages. Personnel from the district administration, police, SDRF, NEEPCO, ex-servicemen and local volunteers have joined the ongoing search operation. An IAF helicopter has also transported additional SDRF personnel and rescue equipment to the Pitapool area to strengthen the mission.
Preliminary assessments indicate that nearly 18 residential units in and around the NEEPCO Colony have been damaged. A 35-year-old woman was found dead on Wednesday, while 17 other people sustained injuries in the disaster.
According to the District Disaster Management Authority (DDMA), the immediate priority remains locating the four missing individuals and restoring connectivity to the affected areas. Two excavators have been deployed to clear the road towards Potin. Meanwhile, the Border Roads Organisation (BRO) is carrying out restoration work from the Kimin side, while additional road clearance efforts are underway from the Hoj side.
Heavy rainfall has cut off six districts—Keyi Panyor, Kra Daadi, Kurung Kumey, Lower Subansiri, Kamle and Upper Subansiri—from the rest of the state. Landslides have also disrupted vehicular movement along the Itanagar-Hoj-Yazali stretch of National Highway-13.
The state Home Department said continuous rainfall has blocked several major roads in Keyi Panyor and Papum Pare districts, including the Sagalee-Hoj route, Pitapool-Toru Road, Pitapool-Hoj Road and multiple stretches of the Kimin Bypass. Authorities have advised residents to avoid these routes until normal traffic movement is restored.
Chief Minister Pema Khandu expressed grief over the loss of life and destruction caused by the disaster and assured affected families of full government support. He said all concerned agencies have been mobilised for rescue and relief operations and that the state government is closely monitoring the situation to ensure timely rescue, relief and medical assistance for those impacted by the floods.
