Heavy rain and flooding in Nepal resulted in 59 deaths; 44 people are still missing: At least 59 people have died in Nepal’s landslides and floods caused by torrential rains, and rescue workers are looking for 44 more people who may have gone missing, according to authorities on Saturday.
Experts claim that although rain-related disasters are typical in South Asia during the monsoon season, which runs from June to September, their frequency and severity are rising due to climate change.
Since Friday, large portions of Nepal have been submerged, leading disaster management officials to issue warnings about flash floods in several rivers.
“There are 44 missing, 36 injured, and 59 dead as of right now,” Nepal police spokesman Dan Bahadur Karki told AFP.
More than 200 flood and landslide accidents have been reported, according to Karki, and the number is probably going to rise.
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The capital city of Kathmandu’s rivers overflowed their banks, submerging surrounding homes. It’s frightful. “I have never witnessed such a level of destruction in my life,” stated 34-year-old Mahamad Shabuddin, the owner of a motorcycle business in the city close to the swollen Bagmati river.
In order to reach safety, survivors were observed wading through murky waters or standing atop buildings.
Truck driver Hari Mallah, 49, told AFP that “the water had reached up to my shoulders when I went outside in the middle of the night.”
“My truck is completely underwater.”
The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority of Nepal’s Basanta Adhikari stated that rescue and relief efforts were underway for people affected by the floods.
In order to support helicopter and motorboat rescue operations, more than 3,000 security guards were sent into the area.
Rescue personnel were hauling individuals to safety aboard rafts.
Landslides have blocked many roads, imprisoning hundreds of commuters.
According to traffic police official Bishwaraj Khadka of Kathmandu, “we have about eight locations; all of them have been blocked due to landslides in different sections of the road.”
Starting on Friday night, all domestic flights departing from Kathmandu were canceled, impacting over 150 trips.
Seventy to eighty percent of South Asia’s annual rainfall occurs during the summer monsoon.
Every year, South Asia experiences significant mortality and destruction due to the monsoon rains, which last from June to September. However, in recent years, there have been more devastating floods and landslides.Climate change, according to experts, has made them more frequent and intense.
A landslide in the Chitwan district in July forced two busses carrying fifty-nine persons into a river.
Only 20 remains were found after the tragedy, despite the fact that three passengers managed to escape unharmed and that the search was hampered by rushing floodwaters.
This year, rain-related calamities in Nepal have claimed the lives of over 220 individuals.
