A total of 176 tourists were on Tuesday airlifted from North Sikkim, which has been ravaged by a flash flood in the Teesta river, Chief Secretary VB Pathak said.
With this, a total of 690 tourists, including 26 foreigners, have been rescued by air from the Lachen and Lachung towns in North Sikkim by the Indian Air Force (IAF) since Monday, he said.
While seven IAF helicopters were deployed on Monday, four were deployed on Tuesday to bring the tourists to the Pakyong airport, he added.
Additionally, 499 people — tourists and locals — were shifted from North Sikkim to Mangan by other modes of transportation, from where they left for Gangtok in state-run buses and private taxis, Pathak said.
