Last week, a massive flash flood wreaked havoc in Uttarakhand after the water level in Dhauliganga river rose suddenly due to the breakdown of a glacier near a power project at Raini village in the Tapovan area of Chamoli district. Hundreds of people were reported dead, missing or injured due to the glacier burst tragedy in Chamoli district of Uttarakhand. The rescue operations continue at Tapovan tunnel on the sixth day today following the glacier burst.
Amidst all this, heart-melting scenes have emerged, where a two-year-old Bhotia breed dog named ‘Blackie’ has been spotted waiting outside the tunnel of the Tapovan dam. According to reports, the dog has been waiting there for the last three to four days. He has been awaiting the return of his caretakers who fed and petted him.
https://twitter.com/vikrantkumar/status/1360178994411237377?ref_src=twsrc%5EtfwActually, Blackie was born close to the area where the NTCP’s hydel project was coming up. The labourers working at the construction site use to feed and pet Blackie. Every morning, the canine came uphill to meet his caretakers and would return by the evening. This was the routine he had been following.
Like always, on the day of the incident too, Blackie came uphill to meet his caretakers, only to not find them there. Since then, Blackie has been, reportedly, waiting there in hope to meet his caretakers.
Many times he has been shooed away by the rescue operators, but Blackie does not budge. He keeps coming back to check on his caretakers. Locals say that Blackie has been looking extremely anxious for the last three days.
An Army officer said that the dog was likely the pet of someone trapped inside the tunnel.
A resident named Ajeet Kumar has told Times of India: “He must have realized something was amiss. The place was full of strangers who paid no attention to him.” Kumar added that Blackie used to laze around close to the project site.
One of the workers named Rajinder Kumar said, “We would give him food, a sack to sleep on when we worked. Blackie would be around during the day and leave in the evening when we did.”
According to reports, more than 50 labourers were reported to be working on the site at the time of the incident. Though rescue teams have been working ceaselessly, 30 people are still feared to be trapped inside the Tapovan tunnel.
As many as 36 bodies have been recovered from different areas hit by the glacier burst, while 204 people are still reported missing.