--- description: State leader cites lack of communication lines and submerging of infrastructure as causes for government inability to act. title: Kashmir Floodwaters Paralyzed Relief Effort image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt830ba6ab9f77a86f/6986a2fc06f2c17f90330adf/omar_abdullah_floods.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [World](/section/world/) ## World Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Kashmir Floods Hampered Emergency Services, Says Chief Minister by [Rishi Iyengar](/author/rishi-iyengar/) ## Rishi Iyengar Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Sep 12, 2014 8:17 AM CUT  Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah arrives at the airport to inspect the rescue and relief operations following flooding on September 9, 2014 in Srinagar, India. Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah arrives at the airport to inspect the rescue and relief operations following flooding on September 9, 2014 in Srinagar, India.Nitin Kanotra —Hindustan Times / Getty Images by [Rishi Iyengar](/author/rishi-iyengar/) ## Rishi Iyengar Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Sep 12, 2014 8:17 AM CUT Responding to widespread public anger at his government’s handling of the recent Kashmir floods, chief minister Omar Abdullah said floodwaters [paralyzed emergency services](http://www.ndtv.com/article/india/jammu-and-kashmir-floods-i-had-no-government-omar-abdullah-tells-ndtv-590295?pfrom=home-lateststories "undefined"). “My government couldn’t respond in the first 24 hours as we didn’t have a government,” Abdullah said in an interview with Indian news channel NDTV. “My secretariat, the police headquarters, the control room, fire services, hospitals, all the infrastructure was underwater,” he said, adding that he was only now able to get in touch with his ministers. The New York _Times_ had earlier reported [widespread anger](http://www.nytimes.com/2014/09/11/world/asia/floods-india-pakistan.html?partner=rss&emc=rss&smid=tw-nytime&%5Fr=0 "undefined") against the government as the floodwaters receded, with multiple instances of attacks on rescue services being reported. More than 200 people have been killed over the past week in the worst floods the Kashmir region has seen in five decades, with an equal number perishing in neighboring parts of Pakistan. The Indian army and disaster response forces have collectively transported nearly 100,000 people to safety, but thousands more remain stranded on rooftops waiting for help. In the state capital, Srinagar, meanwhile, people began taking advantage of receding water levels by [looting](http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/JK-floods-96000-rescued-but-theft-cases-rise-in-valley/articleshow/42314521.cms?imageid=42167680#slide20 "undefined") abandoned homes, according to the _Times of India._ More than 700,000 villagers in India and Pakistan have been forced to flee their homes as record flooding sweeps through their neighborhoods. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3332973/kashmir-floods-chief-minister-omar-abdullah-rescue/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3332973/kashmir-floods-chief-minister-omar-abdullah-rescue/"},"headline":"Kashmir Floods Hampered Emergency Services, Says Chief Minister","datePublished":"2014-09-12T08:17:59.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-21T10:08:59.201Z","description":"State leader cites lack of communication lines and submerging of infrastructure as reasons why government couldn't respond","url":"https://time.com/3332973/kashmir-floods-chief-minister-omar-abdullah-rescue/","keywords":["Army","Pakistan","India","Floods","Relief","rescue","Kashmir"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt830ba6ab9f77a86f/6986a2fc06f2c17f90330adf/omar_abdullah_floods.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Rishi Iyengar","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/rishi-iyengar/"}],"articleSection":"World","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt830ba6ab9f77a86f/6986a2fc06f2c17f90330adf/omar_abdullah_floods.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Jammu And Kashmir Flood","caption":"Jammu And Kashmir Flood","creditText":"Nitin Kanotra —Hindustan Times / Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/world/","name":"World"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3332973/kashmir-floods-chief-minister-omar-abdullah-rescue/","name":"Kashmir Floods Hampered Emergency Services, Says Chief Minister"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"More Than 700,000 People DIsplaced In Flooding","description":"More than 700,000 villagers have been forced to flee their homes as record flooding sweeps through a large swath of northern India and Pakistan.","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/dEzB6JV9/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2014-09-12T03:47:07.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/dEzB6JV9.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/3332973/kashmir-floods-chief-minister-omar-abdullah-rescue/","duration":"PT40S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/3332973/kashmir-floods-chief-minister-omar-abdullah-rescue/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```