Heart-wrenching details have emerged about the death of five soldiers during a recent military drill in the Shyok river near the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in eastern Ladakh.
The soldiers, including a a junior commissioned officer (JCO), were drowned when their Russian-origin T-72 tank was swept away following flash floods in the Shyok river.
Two T-72 tanks were trying to cross Shyok at midnight and one of them got stuck in high currents in the river as the melting of snow had increased the water levels. According to a report in The Tribune, the soldiers battled the fierce waters flowing at nearly 40 km per hour that night for six hours before they were swept away.
As their tank was being submerged, the five soldiers stood on top of the sinking tank for nearly six hours even as rescue efforts were underway, the report, citing Army sources, said. The Army had deployed rescue teams but the mission didn't succeed because of the raging waters in the river.
Although the Army was ready with BAUTs (boat assault universal type) for emergency, a BAUT that was employed for rescuing the soldiers capsized. The rescue team too had faced danger then.
The deceased soldiers belonged to the 52 Armoured Regiment deployed at Daulat Beg Oldi (DBO) military base. "Rescue teams rushed to the location, however, due to high current and water levels, the rescue mission didn't succeed, and the tank crew lost their lives," the Army had said after the mishap.
