Nepal rain disasters kill at least 27: Authorities

Kathmandu: At least 27 people have been killed in rain-induced disasters across Nepal since September 24, officials said Tuesday.

Four people remain missing, and eight have been injured in incidents linked to heavy rainfall, including floods and landslides, according to the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority (NDRRMA).

Twenty people were killed in landslides, four in floods and three in incidents related to heavy rainfall since September 24, the authority said.

The disasters affected 1,082 families and killed 114 livestock. They also destroyed 227 houses and partially damaged 142 others, while floods and landslides damaged 31 bridges.

According to the NDRRMA, 542 rain-induced disaster incidents were reported between September 24 and Sunday.

The Department of Hydrology and Meteorology recorded more than 100 mm of rain at 186 rainfall measurement stations across the country over the four-day period through September 27.

Dedhgaun in Nawalparasi (Bardaghat Susta East) recorded the highest rainfall at 544.2 mm, followed by 500.2 mm at Panchase in Kaski and 472 mm at Atraulitaar in Tanahun.

The heavy rainfall was associated with a low-pressure area near Uttar Pradesh in northern India and moisture-laden winds from the Bay of Bengal, according to the weather authorities.

The NDRRMA, through telecom service providers, sent flood-warning SMS alerts to more than 980,000 people.

Around 2,000 people at risk from floods were relocated to safer areas, NDRRMA spokesperson Shanti Mahat said. People trapped by floods and landslides in remote districts, including Jajarkot, Myagdi and Baglung, were rescued by helicopter, she said.

Security personnel from the Nepal Police, Armed Police Force and Nepali Army were deployed for search, rescue and relief operations.

Seventy-eight people at risk in Pauddhar of Annapurna Rural Municipality-5 in Myagdi were rescued by helicopter and taken to a safe place September 27, Mahat said. Four people stranded on an island in the Bheri River in Jajarkot were also airlifted.

Heavy rainfall triggered landslides in Chame, Manang, on the afternoon of September 27, with flood and landslide debris from Ghatte Khola partially blocking the Marsyangdi River and causing the two waterways to merge and form a lake, according to local media reports.

Residents in Chame and surrounding areas fled to forests, caves and other safer locations as the river rose. By Monday, the water level in the lake had fallen by about a metre and a bridge that had been submerged began to reappear, according to local media reports.

The flooding also damaged roads and bridges along the Kaligandaki corridor. Kantipur reported landslides at several locations and sections of road being cut away by the swollen river. About 30 metres of road was cut at Dedhgaun, while more than 50 metres was damaged near Ridi and Rudrabeni.

The NDRRMA issued alerts to officials in the concerned districts and local bodies, asking them to maintain a high level of vigilance in downstream areas and evacuate families living in vulnerable locations to safer places.

Water levels in major rivers, including the Narayani and Gandaki, started declining gradually, and the overall situation was moving towards normalcy from September 28, the NDRRMA said.

The latest landslides and floods come as Nepal is still recovering from last month’s devastating flash floods originating near the Nepal-Tibet border.

The Bhotekoshi River, flowing south from the Himalayan border region, carried floodwaters downstream, sweeping away homes, vehicles, roads and bridges and damaging hydropower projects August 26, killing more than 1,450 people, while around 5,000 remain missing.