Death toll rises to 62 in Nepal's monsoon mayhem

Jul 07, 2024

Kathmandu [Nepal], July 7 : The death toll in Nepal has risen to 62 since the onset of monsoon as rain continues to batter the Himalayan Nation which is expecting more than average rainfall this season.
According to the records of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority under the Ministry of Home Affairs, 62 people have been killed to date in various monsoon-related disasters of floods, landslides and lightning.
As per the authority, four people still are unaccounted for and 90 people have sustained injuries.
According to the Centre, one person in Morang, three in Dang, one in Kailali, two in Kavrepalanchowk, one in Udayapur, and nine in Palpa were killed due to floods on Saturday alone. Moreover, two people are missing due to the flood.
Five houses were completely damaged. Eleven houses have been partially damaged.
Similarly, 34 people lost their lives due to landslides. According to the Authority's statistics, two people went missing and 38 people were injured due to landslides.
Likewise, 43 houses have been completely damaged by landslides and 24 houses were partially damaged. Nineteen sheds were damaged and 12 people were injured. Similarly, 11 houses are completely damaged and six houses are partially damaged due to inundation.
According to the Authority, the flood and landslides have caused damage equivalent to eight million and six hundred thousand rupees so far. According to statistics, 19 people died and 35 people were injured due to lightning.
"Monsoon-related incidents such as floods, landslides, inundation and lightning are still increasing. We are moving forward by coordinating with the relevant agencies to reduce the damage," Dr Dijan Bhattarai, the spokesperson for the Authority said.
This year, it is estimated that there will be more rain than average and 1.8 million people will be affected by it so it is important to be cautious, he added. According to him, during this year's monsoon period, it is estimated that 412 thousand households will be affected by monsoon-related disasters.
Sunil Pokharel, the spokesperson of the Department of Meteorology, informed that the risk of flooding will decrease throughout the country from Monday.