Firemen rescue fishing enthusiast trapped by rising Teesta

GANGTOK, 12 June:  An afternoon of leisurely fishing turned disastrous yesterday when a sudden swell in the Teesta stranded one Kumar Bardewa, a resident of Singtam, on a rock in the middle of the river. Surrounded by the swirling waters of the river, he was stranded at the spot he had walked across to only hours earlier. The NHPC Stage-V reservoir at Dikchu, it may be recalled, is maintaining a low level [releasing more water] because of the high siltation getting deposited in it. The friends were obviously caught by one such release from the reservoir.
The incident occurred near the Singtam Bridge which leads to Manpari basti on the far bank.
With no immediate help available and the river rising every minute, locals from Singtam bazaar called the local Fire Station, whose personnel, after an hour of negotiating the river current, managed to rescue the man with the help of ropes and some brute strength. 

The Singtam Fire crew reached the spot at around 4:15 p.m. after a sudden surge in the river level stranded Kumar in the middle of the river.
“The fire crew headed by SFO Birkha Bahadur Limboo managed to rescue the man within an hour. He was saved in the nick of time as the rock on which he was standing was submerged by the silt-laden waters of Teesta just as he was pulled away from it. The operation was a big success and the fire rescue team deserves all credit,” conveys Deputy Chief Fire Officer Prakash Rai, who is also incharge of Gangtok, Rangpo and Singtam fire stations.
“This is a commendable and courageous job and we have recommended their names for rewards from the Department,” the DCFO added while speaking to NOW! today.