Cloudburst in Uttarakhand Triggers Flash Floods

New Delhi- At least 12 people have died and hundreds more have been rescued after flash floods ravaged the country's northern Himalayas region, officials said on Thursday.

The state's capital, Delhi, received 147 mm (5.8 inches) of rain in just one day, which triggered severe floods that swept through the city and its suburbs, the India Meteorological Department said in a statement.

At least seven people were killed in Delhi, and local media reports said some more had died. Many others were reported missing.

The state's chief minister's office shared a statement that said rescue workers had saved more than 1,000 people who were stranded in different parts of the Kedarnath route, a trek to a Hindu pilgrimage site. It also said that a patch of the national highway was washed out by the floods.

According to the statement, "Three people died and parts of two bridges washed away after a cloudburst -- a massive amount of rain in a brief period -- in Uttarakhand state, officials said, and bad weather was hampering communications in the hilly terrain."

It added, "Rescue workers saved over 1,000 people who were stranded in different locations on the Kedarnath route -- a trek to a Hindu pilgrimage site -- and a patch of the national highway was washed out, district official Saurabh Gaharwar said by phone."

The state's chief minister's office said that due to the extreme rainfall, the situation has deteriorated in many areas and the number of missing people continues to increase. He said that the situation is extremely bad in many areas and the rescue workers are working vigilantly.