Rains, raging rivers ravage western districts
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KATHMANDU, AUG 04 -
Torrential rainfall since Thursday night battered different parts of western Nepal, causing floods and landslides that killed at least nine people and left hundreds without homes.
Around 1,000 houses in Dang were waterlogged after raging flood waters from the Rapti river entered Sisahaniya, Sonpur, Lalmatiya, Gobardiha, Bela and Satbariya VDCs on Friday morning.
Three persons, including an Armed Police Force (APF) personnel involved in the rescue, died in the flood. The dead have been identified as Gyan Bahadur Pun of Gobardiha-9, Khairun Nisha of Sisahaniya-9 and APF deputy head constable Ram Bahadur Rana, who hailed from Dailekh district.
One woman identified as Kamarun Nisha of Sisahaniya-9 has gone missing.
Nisha and three others, including one of the dead, Khairun Nisha, were swept away by the flood while they were out collecting firewood.
The two other women—Aisha Khatun and Amarun Nisha—were later found holding onto a tree at Sonpur. The duo had been there for nearly eight hours when APF personnel came to their rescue.
Thirteen people, who had managed to save themselves by climbing up nearby trees, were rescued by a Nepal Army helicopter sent from the Capital.
“As the floodwaters showed no sign of receding, we had to send for the army helicopter to rescue the people,” Dang Chief District Officer Madhusunda Burlakoti said. “Many people were stranded in the middle of the waters. They were all rescued and brought to safety.”
Rapti flood, meanwhile, also hit a large area of Nepalgunj in Banke district. The flood waters have also breached the makeshift embankment that was built recently to stave off the river from eroding the banks.
A landslide caused by continuous rainfall at Thulo Lumpek-2 in Gulmi district killed four members of a family. The victims were identified as Bawi BK and her children Umesh, 13, Muna, 11, and six-year-old Bipana. Bawi’s husband Ghanashyam and their son Keshar were rescued alive by the local people.
Deputy Superintendent of Police Raj Kumar Baidawar at the Gulmi District Police Office said incessant rains for the last couple of days have disrupted traffic in different parts of the district.
More than 200 houses at the Rajapur region in Bardiya district were swamped by flood waters from the Karnali and Babai rivers.
The rivers spilled their banks and entered 11 VDCs in the region, including Gulariya Municipality. The local administration has directed security agencies to remain alert in case of an emergency.
In Manang, a flashflood triggered by a landslide at Sanokhola river on Friday afternoon submerged the Talgaon village of Dharapani VDC along the Annapurna trekking route, displacing nearly 400 villagers. Three persons injured in the incident were taken to Kathmandu for treatment.
Floods and landslides were also reported from districts like Kapilvastu, Baglung, Myagdi, Bajura and Kailali. Two persons died and two others went missing in Baglung after being swept away while trying to cross flooded rivers. Similarly, two persons from Kolti in Bajura district went missing after being swept away by a local river.
(Reporting from Dang, Banke, Gulmi, Bardiya, Manang, Kapilvastu, Baglung, Myagdi, Bajura and Kailali)
East, central areas still parched
Active monsoon since Thursday resulted in heavy rainfall in western and parts of central Nepal. However, pockets of the Eastern and Central regions still remained dry.
Various districts in the Chure and Tarai regions—Kailali, Banke, Dang, Kaski and Parsa—received rainfall above 100 millimetres on Friday, according to the Meteorological Forecasting Division (MFD).
Of the 19 meteorological stations across the country, 18 recorded rainfall, ranging from moderate to heavy, since Thursday evening. Biratnagar in the Eastern region did not record any rainfall on Thursday and Friday, while drought continues in the region, the MFD said. “We expect the rainfall to continue for the next 24-hours,” said Rajendra Prasad Shrestha, senior meteorologist at the MFD.
According to Shrestha, the low pressure system that developed in Uttar Pradesh in north India influenced intense rainfall activity in the western districts of Nepal. “The intense rainfall activity will be subdued from Saturday afternoon,” he added.
On Friday, Nepalgunj and Dipayal received the highest and lowest amount of rainfall measuring 220.7 millimetres and 2.2 millimetres respectively in 24 hours. Meanwhile, Dhangadhi, Dang, Pokhara and Simara received rainfall measuring 129.9, 128.4, 117.2 and 110.6 millimetres respectively. However, according to the MFD, most places in the hilly and high-mountain regions along with some districts in the Eastern and the Central regions have not received rainfall for weeks.
Posted on: 2012-08-04 01:00
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