At least 56 people have died and dozens more remain missing after torrents of water and mud driven by intense rain crashed through a Himalayan village Thursday in Indian-administered Kashmir, a top disaster management official told AFP.

It is the second major deadly flooding disaster in India this month.

"The news is grim," Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah said in a statement, reporting a "cloudburst" of heavy rain that had hit the Kishtwar district.

Crowds gathered at a Kishtwar hospital while people carried some of the injured on stretchers.

Mohammad Irshad, a top disaster management official, told AFP "56 dead bodies were recovered" from the site before rescue efforts were halted for the night.

Irshad said 80 people were reported missing and 300 people were rescued, "50 of whom

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