Weather Havoc Grips Jammu: Orange Alert Issued for Heavy Rain and Flash Floods
Jammu, August 31, 2025 - The Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir is once again at the mercy of relentless monsoon fury, with Jammu city and its surrounding areas under an orange alert this morning. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) and the State Disaster Management Authority (SDMA) have issued a stern warning for heavy rainfall, which is expected to trigger flash floods and landslides in the vulnerable hilly regions. Residents have been advised to exercise extreme caution and avoid non-essential travel as the weather system persists.
The current weather pattern is a result of a complex interaction between a Western Disturbance and the ongoing monsoon trough, a phenomenon that has repeatedly caused devastating weather events across the region this August. The downpour, which began in the early morning hours, has already led to significant waterlogging in several low-lying areas of Jammu, disrupting daily life and causing traffic snarls.
A Month of Unprecedented Rain and Tragedy
The current orange alert is the latest in a series of severe weather warnings that have defined the month of August 2025 for Jammu. The region has already witnessed a grim toll, with the monsoon-related death count in the Jammu division climbing to a staggering 122. This figure includes casualties from multiple cloudbursts, flash floods, and landslides that have struck different districts over the past few weeks.
Just yesterday, reports emerged of a horrific incident in Ramban and Reasi districts, where cloudbursts and flash floods claimed the lives of 11 people. A family of seven, including a couple and their five children, were buried alive in a mud torrent that swept away their mountainside home in Reasi's Badder village. The victims were identified as Nazir Ahmad and his wife Wazira Begum, along with their sons Bilal, Mustafa, Adil, Mubarak, and Wasim, aged between 5 and 13. In Ramban, another tragedy struck the remote Rajgarh village, where floodwaters flattened two homes and a school, killing four people, identified as Ashwani Sharma, Dwarka Nath, Virta Devi, and Om Raj.
These incidents underscore the sheer destructive power of the monsoon in this geologically fragile region. The SDMA and local administration have been working round-the-clock, with rescue and relief operations, including those by the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), and the Indian Army, actively engaged in evacuating stranded individuals and providing assistance to affected families.
Impact on Infrastructure and Daily Life
The continuous downpour has crippled critical infrastructure and brought normal life to a standstill in Jammu. The vital Jammu-Srinagar national highway, the lifeline of the region, has been intermittently closed for days due to landslides and rockfalls, particularly in the Ramban and Udhampur districts. A senior official confirmed that the highway was only partially reopened yesterday to clear a backlog of over 3,000 stranded vehicles, but the risk of further closures remains high.
Rivers and streams across the region, including the Tawi, Chenab, Ujh, and Basantar, are flowing at or above the danger mark. The rising water levels have prompted authorities to issue flood alerts for low-lying areas, and evacuations have been carried out in several localities. The Tawi river in Udhampur has already crossed its 20-foot danger mark, while a portion of a bridge on the Tawi was reported to have collapsed earlier in the week.
The pilgrimage to the holy shrine of Vaishno Devi has been suspended for the past several days, a precautionary measure that followed a tragic landslide near Ardhkuwari earlier in the month that killed 34 pilgrims. The decision was met with protests by some locals, but the authorities, including the Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board, have maintained that safety is the top priority.
In an effort to ensure the safety of students, all schools and government offices, with the exception of essential services, have remained shut since August 26. The Jammu and Kashmir Board of School Education (JKBOSE) has also postponed examinations, and recruitment drives for constable posts have been put on hold until weather conditions improve. The Department of Telecom has activated Intra-Circle Roaming (ICR) in affected areas to ensure uninterrupted communication, acknowledging the widespread disruption to telecom services.
The Science Behind the Fury
Meteorological experts attribute the severity of the rainfall to a combination of factors. Dr. Mukhtar Ahmed, Director of the MeT Department in Kashmir, explained that the weather phenomenon is a result of a highly active "interaction zone" where the monsoon system collides with the Western Disturbance. This convergence leads to the intensification of weather activity, resulting in heavy rainfall, cloudbursts, and extreme weather events. The Director noted that Jammu had received a record-breaking 380 mm of rainfall in a 24-hour period earlier this month, surpassing the previous record of 270 mm set in 1988, highlighting the unprecedented nature of the current monsoon.
The ongoing weather system is expected to persist, with the IMD's warning for more intense downpours through September 2, 2025. Authorities have urged the public to heed all advisories, stay away from water bodies and landslide-prone areas, and remain indoors as much as possible. The resilience of the Jammu and Kashmir administration, along with the support of the Indian Army, NDRF, and local volunteers, will be crucial in mitigating the impact of this ongoing natural disaster. The focus remains on rescue, relief, and the swift restoration of normalcy once the weather system abates
0 Comments