Five killed in Assam, toll rises to 44

The flood situation in Assam worsened on Wednesday as five more deaths were reported in the deluge, which has affected 17.2 lakh people in 24 districts.

The mighty Brahmaputra and its tributaries have submerged 2,500 villages, destroyed 1.06 lakh hectares of crop land, damaged infrastructure by breaching the embankments and overrunning roads and bridges, said the Assam State Disaster Management Authority. Five more deaths were reported, taking the toll to 44. One death each was reported from Majuli, Sivasagar, Dhemaji, Golaghat and Nagaon districts.

Nearly 75% of the Kaziranga National Park, a World Heritage Site, was inundated, leading to the drowning of two female hog deer and one male swamp deer in the northern range of the park.

According to the Eastern Assam Wildlife Division, the animals, including rhinos, have been forced to take shelter at the highlands and at the Karbi Anglong hills across National Highway 37, which passes through the park.

The National Disaster Response Force and the State Disaster Response Force, along with the authorities and the police, have so far rescued 7,814 people who were marooned in 16 districts. Nearly one lakh people have taken shelter in 231 relief camps.

Flood worsens in UP

Ten people, including women and children, were killed when houses collapsed in different parts of Uttar Pradesh in the heavy rain. The flood situation worsened in the state following a rise in the water levels of major rivers.

Three children were buried alive after a wall caved in amid heavy rain at Mirpur village in Barabanki district on Wednesday evening. In similar incidents at Lakhimpur-Kheri and Badayun districts, seven people were killed.

Reports said that an overflowing Ghaghra river breached its embankments in Barabanki, Gonda and Bahariah districts and inundated large tracts of lands. Dozens of villages were marooned in these districts, sources said.

In Bihar, heavy rainfall in the last 10 days has brought down the rain deficiency to a mere 2%, a remarkable recovery if one takes into account the 43% deficient rainfall figure on June 29.

As many as 34 people died in the state due to lightning. People, particularly in rural areas, have been advised to never take shelter under an isolated tree and to immediately move to a building or an enclosed area.
Heavy rain in TN

Normal life was affected due to heavy rain that battered northern districts of Tamil Nadu, including Chennai, with weather officials predicting more downpour over the region in the next two days due to a trough over the Bay of Bengal.

Heavy rain is also expected in Krishnagiri, Dharmapuri and Coimbatore districts.

Landslides in Itanagar

Flood and landslides triggered by incessant rain in the last few days have completely cut off many district headquarters in Arunachal Pradesh from the rest of the country, officials said. Itanagar was virtually cut off with its lifeline NH-415 getting totally eroded at the entry point, while the alternate road via Jullang remained blocked leaving only one road through Hollongi en route to Lakhimpur district in Assam open.