18 dead as rain triggers flashfloods, landslides in North-East
At least 18 people have been killed and several injured in flashfloods and landslides triggered by heavy rain in the Northeastern region in the past few days. In Arunachal Pradesh, seven members of two families lost their lives after their...
People stand as floodwater flows through a washed-away portion of the National Highway-17 after heavy rainfall in Kamrup district of Assam on Saturday. Photo: PTI
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At least 18 people have been killed and several injured in flashfloods and landslides triggered by heavy rain in the Northeastern region in the past few days.
In Arunachal Pradesh, seven members of two families lost their lives after their vehicle was swept off the road by a landslide late Friday night along the Bana-Seppa stretch of National Highway 13 in East Kameng district. In a separate incident in Lower Subansiri district, two labourers were killed and two others rescued after a landslide struck a cabbage farm near the Pine Groove area along the Ziro-Kamle road, the police said. At least 117 houses, along with several vital infrastructure in Daporijo district, were affected due to inclement weather conditions.
In Assam, five persons were killed in landslides in the past 24 hours as incessant rain led to floods in six districts, affecting over 10,000 people. Three districts in the western part of the state remained on 'red alert' and eight more were on 'orange alert'. Rainwaters from upstream areas in Arunachal Pradesh and Meghalaya aggravated the flood situation in the state. The Assam State Disaster Management Authority (ASDMA) said all five deaths have been reported from the Kamrup Metropolitan district.
Urban Affairs Minister Jayanta Malla Baruah said several agencies were working to provide relief to affected people as massive waterlogging was reported from most localities in the city on Friday.
Baruah inspected the situation in different parts of the city during the day to assess the prevailing situation and review the government's emergency response measures.
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Floods have also been reported in Dhemaji, Lakhimpur and Golaghat, impacting eight revenue circles in these three districts. A total of 10,150 people have been affected by 'urban floods', with two camps and one relief distribution centre being opened.
Almost all the major rivers across the state were on a 'rising' water level trend, as per ASDMA information. The Brahmaputra was flowing near the danger level in Dibrugarh, Ranganadi in Lakhimpur, Dhansiri in Numaligarh, Jia Bharali in Sonitpur, Kopili in Kampur and Beki in Barpeta. affected on Friday due to heavy rain and gusty winds, the officials said.
In Mizoram, four persons, including three Myanmar refugees, were killed and one injured when their houses collapsed due to landslides triggered by heavy rain on Saturday, taking the toll in the current monsoon to five.
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Three persons aged between 34 and 71 years from a Myanmar family have died and another was injured when a massive landslide struck and buried their rented house at Vaphai village in east Mizoram's Champhai district near the Myanmar border on early Saturday, they said.
Mizoram has been experiencing heavy rain since Friday, triggering landslides and rockfalls at several places. At least 56 houses were damaged in 147 landslides across the state on Saturday, according to a bulletin by state emergency operation centre. Sixty-three families were also evacuated to safer places due to landslides and floods, it said.
Landslides have also blocked national and intra-state highways at 69 locations, the bulletin said.
Officials also said that many travellers intending to travel to the southern part of the state were stranded in Serchhip town after landslides damaged a national highway.
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