By Sunil Sonker
Mussoorie, 18 Sep: Heavy rains on the night of September 15th wreaked havoc in Mussoorie and its surrounding hill areas. The rains caused numerous landslides, left a massive amount of debris on the Mussoorie-Dehradun Road, and completely damaged several other roads. The situation became particularly serious when a major bridge connecting Mussoorie to Dehradun collapsed, leaving Mussoorie completely isolated.
According to locals, the rain was so heavy that water entered many houses by midnight, forcing people to flee in panic. When the weather cleared in the morning, the roads were filled with debris, trees were uprooted, and traffic was completely disrupted. Cracks had appeared at several places on the Mussoorie-Dehradun Road.
Over 2,000 tourists were stranded in Mussoorie. Debris on the roads and collapsed bridges prevented vehicles from moving or evacuating. However, in this time of crisis, locals set an example by providing food, water, and shelter to the tourists. One tourist said, “We were stranded for three days, but the locals came as angels to us.”
Recognising the gravity of the situation, Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami and Cabinet Minister Ganesh Joshi personally arrived at the scene. They reviewed the situation with officials from the administration, disaster management, and public works departments. Relief work was immediately initiated in the affected areas.
Construction of a ‘Bailey bridge’ using military technology began on a war footing to replace the damaged bridge connecting Mussoorie and Dehradun. It was completed within just 48 hours. As soon as the bridge was completed, light vehicles and two-wheelers were allowed to travel, providing relief to the stranded tourists.
On Thursday, the Chief Minister and Cabinet Minister inspected the Bailey Bridge and directed officials to complete the repairs to the damaged roads as soon as possible.
Mussoorie SDM Rahul Anand and Mussoorie Police Inspector Santosh Kunwar reported that traffic was reopened on the bridge on Wednesday evening, but some technical problems arose on Thursday morning. Traffic was temporarily halted for safety reasons, but the problem was resolved after 11 a.m., and light vehicles resumed their travel on the bridge.
The administration is continuously removing debris from the road. Public Works Department officials are monitoring the bridge and roads. The Chief Minister has clarified that the government’s first priority is to ensure the safe return of all those stranded in Mussoorie to their destinations.
