In Srinagar, Phone Networks Down, Making Rescues Tougher

Srinagar: Soldiers were battling on Sunday to rescue thousands of people trapped in Kashmir's worst flooding for half a century which has left nearly 120 people dead and the main city of Srinagar under water. (Crisis in Jammu & Kashmir: Chunks of State Under Water, Srinagar Sends SOS)

The Jhelum river, swollen by heavy rain, flooded large parts of Srinagar on Sunday and forced frantic residents onto rooftops, with reports that the first floors of a children's hospital and of another hospital were underwater. (Floods Hit Three Hospitals in Srinagar, Children's Hospital Cut Off)

"I want to appeal to people not to panic," Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah told reporters. "I know the situation is bad but they should stay above the water level," he said, adding that 110 people have died in the state so far. (SOSs From Stranded People in Kashmir)

Hundreds of troops, police and other emergency personnel, backed by helicopters and boats, have been deployed across the state to reach those stranded, with 11,000 people rescued so far, officials said. (Also read: In and Around Srinagar, Homes and Hospitals Submerged)

Prime Minister Narendra Modi flew to the normally picturesque, remote region to meet Mr Abdullah and emergency response officials amid concerns the death toll could jump.

A police official in Srinagar, a city of 900,000, said he feared the true extent of the devastation was not yet known because phone networks were down and areas cut off.

"We are in a catastrophic situation," he told news agency AFP on condition of anonymity, adding that Srinagar's police headquarters was under water.

"Many people may have died and houses collapsed but we are not getting to know much (information)," he said.

Srinagar resident Aakifa Javaid said her local mosque announced on loudspeakers that "it would be a difficult night, no one should sleep" as the river overflowed its banks. Like hundreds of others in her neighbourhood in the city's north, she fled in the middle of the night when the water reached her home.

An army headquarters was also under water along with some government buildings, while roads and bridges throughout the region have been cut or washed away.

Hundreds of soldiers, backed by 22 helicopters and four aircraft, have fanned out across the Kashmir Valley and the rest of the state to rescue those stranded, deliver aid and restore phone lines, said national cabinet secretary Ajit Seth.

Several thousand villages across the region have been hit and 350 of them are submerged, the home ministry said late Saturday.