At least eight people died after flash floods hit a river in India’s eastern state of West Bengal on Wednesday, in the latest incident of heavy seasonal rains that wreaked havoc across South Asia.
About 70 people were rescued by disaster relief teams, while another 13 were being treated at a regional hospital, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamta Banerjee wrote on social media on Thursday.
The accident happened as people were immersing an idol of the Hindu goddess Durga in the Mal River in the state’s Jalpaiguri district as part of religious festivities, Banerjee said.
“Distressed by the accident during the Durga Puja festivities in Jalpaiguri, West Bengal. Condolences to those who lost their loved ones,” Prime Minister Narendra Modi wrote on Twitter as he announced a compensation package beyond the state government.
The eastern and northeastern parts of India received 128% more rain than usual on Wednesday, with some places receiving up to 90 millimeters of rain, according to the Indian Meteorological Department, which forecasts heavy rain in West Bengal and nearby states. in the next three to four days.
South Asian countries have been hit by heavy seasonal monsoon rains for the past two months. In Pakistan, abnormal rainfall and glacial melt triggered floods that submerged large swaths of the country, leading to nearly 1,700 deaths, in what has been described as an impact of climate change.
In Nepal, officials said that two days of incessant rain had caused the water level in many rivers to rise.
“We have issued warnings to residents along the river banks to remain on high alert for possible flooding and landslides in the mountainous areas, but we have not yet asked them to evacuate,” said a spokesman for the National Disaster Risk Reduction Authority. , Dijan Bhattarai, told Reuters.
More than 60 people have been killed across Nepal in floods and mudslides so far this year, according to official figures. In neighboring Bhutan, officials said at least five people died in a landslide last week.
Source: CNN Brasil
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