Gangtok: The Indo-Tibetan Border Police
(ITBP) Sunday night rescued 15 foreign tourists and 150 villagers
from various parts of north Sikkim which was badly affected in
this evening's earthquake.
The rescued have been moved to the ITBP battalion's
headquarter in Mangan, about 20 km from Gangtok, official
sources said.
Around 400 ITBP personnel and four medical teams at
Pegong are carrying search and rescue operations, while 300
BSF personnel each from Siliguri and Guwahati along with
doctors and para-medical staff have been rushed to affected
areas.
Official sources said the search and rescue operations
are getting hampered because there is no electricity in the
area.
The force's also lost two of its buildings.
"Two buildings have collapsed though there has been no
casualty. The officers’ mess too has been hit. The road outside
the battalion headquarters has cracked. We have launched
search and rescue operations," they said.
The quake measuring 6.8 on Richter Scale with its
epicentre on the Sikkim-Nepal border shook northeast and
northern parts of the country, including the national capital,
this evening.
PTI
First Published: Sunday, September 18, 2011, 21:16