In a heart-wrenching saga of survival and resilience, several tourist families found themselves trapped in the aftermath of a flash flood that struck the remote town of Lachen in north Sikkim. Their ordeal, spanning six days without electricity or mobile connections, came to an end thanks to a heroic army rescue operation.
The nightmare began when Malay Kumar Saha and his wife, Kakali Saha, were jolted awake in their hotel room at 2:30 a.m. by a loud banging on their door. Hotel staff urgently instructed them to evacuate due to an impending flash flood triggered by a glacial lake outburst. The Sahas, like many others, had planned to visit the Gurudongmar Lake, a popular tourist spot near the Indo-China border, but their plans took an unexpected turn.
In the pitch darkness of a town without power, they joined around 20 other tourists on a treacherous journey uphill to reach safety. The deafening roar of the river Lachen, hidden from view, and the ominous sounds of landslides and falling trees created a nightmarish backdrop.
Priyanka Balotra, another stranded tourist, recounted the uncertainty and fear that enveloped the group. With no mobile connectivity, rumors swirled about the cause of the disaster, ranging from cloudbursts to dam failures and earthquakes.
The families, including the Sahas and Balotras, found themselves isolated with no access to communication, food, or basic supplies. Roads and bridges were washed away, leaving Lachung and Lachen entirely cut off from the rest of Sikkim.
As days passed, food supplies dwindled, and the situation grew increasingly dire. Small hotels exhausted their provisions, prompting a village panchayat in Lachen to establish a community kitchen. Tourists were required to visit the panchayat office daily for sustenance.
Stranded tourists lived under constant fear, especially at night when darkness enveloped the town. False alarms of another potential flood added to their anxiety, leading to desperate scrambles to higher ground.
The turning point arrived when the Indian Army launched a heroic rescue operation, airlifting the stranded tourists to safety. Each day, the army provided them with food, assistance, and the crucial opportunity to contact their families.
For those who endured this harrowing experience, like Jayesh Khemani from Gujarat, their gratitude toward the army knows no bounds. Khemani, along with his wife and daughter, expressed their immense relief at having survived the ordeal.
While around 3,000 people, mostly tourists, were initially stranded in the north-Sikkim towns of Lachen, Lachung, and Chungthang, the Indian Army successfully airlifted approximately 500 of them to Gangtok and Pakyong using Mi-17 and Chinook helicopters.
This gripping tale of survival underscores the incredible bravery of the tourists and the invaluable support provided by the Indian Army in the face of adversity.
Sources By Hindustan Times