Landslides, floods kill 109, displace thousands in Nepal, India
PUBLISHED ON AUG 16, 2014 11:15 PM
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Indian residents and security personnel dig through mud following heavy rainfall and landslides in the Pauri district of the state of Uttarakhand on Aug 15, 2014. -- PHOTO: AFP
KATHMANDU (AFP) - The death toll from landslides and flooding triggered by torrential monsoon rains in Nepal and northern India climbed to at least 109 on Saturday as tides of water, mud and rocks swept away houses, officials said.
The downpours also displaced thousands of people in the scenic Himalayan region and revived memories of a deadly deluge last year that killed more than 5,000 people in the
Indian state of Uttarakhand.
The rains in Nepal over the past three days have killed 85 people and left more than 100 others unaccounted for, said national disaster management chief Yadav Prasad Koirala.
"We have recovered 85 bodies so far, 54 people have suffered injuries due to landslides and flooding over the last three days and 113 are still missing," Koirala told AFP.
The rains have damaged roads across the country's western plains bordering India, with poor visibility hindering helicopter rescue efforts to evacuate some 1,500 people stranded in waterlogged homes, said home ministry spokesman Laxmi Prasad Dhakal.
"Because of the damage to roads in the area, we can only deliver relief supplies like tents and medicines by helicopter," Dhakal told AFP.

Army officials rescued some 300 people on Saturday, while hundreds more awaited help in the worst-hit districts of Surkhet and Bardiya, where electricity lines snapped, leaving thousands without power.
"We have had no power all day and we are struggling to reach affected people," said Bardiya district official Tej Prasad Paudel.
In neighbouring Banke district, flooding caused by heavy rain washed away homes, district official Jeevan Oli said.
"We've recovered four bodies, including two children. We've looking for four more people whose hut was swept away last night," Oli told AFP.
The deaths come two weeks after the worst landslide in over a decade smashed into hamlets in northeastern Nepal, killing 156 people.
Monsoon rains have also forced officials to close a major bridge along the country's longest highway after it developed cracks and caved in.
Meanwhile, heavy downpours in neighbouring India triggered landslides and flooding that have claimed at least 24 lives since Friday, according to government officials.
In Uttarakhand state, seven people were killed in their sleep by a landslide as monsoon rains pounded the hilly region this week.
"Seven people were killed while one woman was pulled alive by rescue workers from the debris of a house which collapsed due to overnight rain," district magistrate Chandresh
Yadav told AFP, adding the total death toll was now 24.
According to officials in Pauri district, at least 50 families were stranded and the army was being deployed to evacuate them.
With more rain predicted in the next 24 hours, state authorities have sought reinforcements from the army and the air force, said Indian government spokesman Surendra Kumar.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed grief on Twitter over the loss of lives in the state.
Hundreds of people die every year in floods and landslides during the monsoon season in south Asia.

While annual rains are a lifeline for the region's farmers, flooding, landslides and building collapses are frequent during the monsoon season, which lasts from June to September.
Earlier this month, at least 151 people were killed in western Indian city of Pune by a massive landslide caused by rains.
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Shallow 5.1-magnitude earthquake strikes in south-west China
PUBLISHED ON AUG 17, 2014 9:31 AM
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HONG KONG (AFP) - A moderate 5.1-magnitude earthquake struck China's south-western
Sichuan province early on Sunday, United States geologists said, but there were no immediate reports of casualties or damage.
The quake struck at 6.07am at a depth of 10km, the US Geological Survey said.
Shallow earthquakes can often cause greater damage than more powerful deep ones.
The USGS said the epicentre of the earthquake was 2km south-west of Xiluodu and 96km from Zhaotong in neighbouring Yunnan province, where a deadly quake two weeks ago killed 615 people and injured 3,143.
In May 2008, a giant quake that the Chinese authorities said measured 8.0 magnitude rocked
Sichuan, killing tens of thousands of people and flattening swathes of the province.
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Fears of cholera outbreak in Nepal as rescuers recover bodies after heavy rains
PUBLISHED ON AUG 17, 2014 1:30 PM
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In this photograph taken using a cellphone, Nepalese residents and rescue personnel stand among debris at the site of a landslide on the Sukoshi river in Sindhupalchowk district northeast of Kathmandu on Aug 3, 2014. Rescuers in Nepal struggled to recover bodies on Sunday after monsoon rains swept away houses, killing at least 85 people and sparking fears of a deadly cholera outbreak, officials said. -- PHOTO: AFP
KATHMANDU (AFP) - Rescuers in Nepal struggled to recover bodies on Sunday after monsoon rains swept away houses, killing at least 85 people and sparking fears of a deadly cholera outbreak, officials said.
Torrential rains last week led to multiple landslides and flooding, killing 85 people and leaving more than 100 others unaccounted for, according to the Home Ministry.
The rains have damaged roads across the country's western plains bordering India, forcing officials to rely on helicopters to rescue stranded people as well as deliver emergency supplies.
As the weather cleared up late Saturday, improving visibility after three days of incessant rain, army officials evacuated thousands from badly-hit Bardiya district in the country's western plains, said Home Ministry spokesman Laxmi Prasad Dhakal. "We have evacuated 18,200 people in Bardiya and moved them to relief centres where they can get help," Mr Dhakal told
AFP.
"Our main worry now is of a possible cholera outbreak among the affected people. We have not seen any cases yet, but the health ministry has established camps to prevent any epidemic," Mr Dhakal said.

Cholera, which causes severe diarrhoea, vomiting and dehydration, is spread by eating or drinking food or water contaminated with human faeces.
As water levels slowly recede, rescuers have started moving out people out from their damaged homes into temporary shelters, said national disaster management chief Yadav
Prasad Koirala.
"We are working hard to find the missing 113 people. Our choppers have been running sorties but it's a struggle," Mr Koirala told AFP.
Monsoon rains also forced officials to close a major bridge along the country's longest highway after it developed cracks and caved in.
The deaths come two weeks after the worst landslide in over a decade smashed into hamlets in hilly, north-eastern Nepal, killing 156 people.
Meanwhile, heavy downpours in neighbouring India have claimed at least 24 lives since
Friday in northern Uttarakhand state, reviving memories of a deadly deluge last year that killed more than 5,000 people in the same region.
Hundreds of people die every year in floods and landslides during the monsoon season in
South Asia.
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Floods, landslides in Japan after rain kill 2, prompt evacuation advisory for 80,000
PUBLISHED ON AUG 17, 2014 3:47 PM
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This picture taken on Aug 10, 2014, shows muddy water running before a sweet shop in Kyoto, wstern Japan. Floods and landslides following torrential rain in western Japan have killed at least two people and prompted one city to advise more than 80,000 people to flee their homes, officials said on Sunday. -- PHOTO: AFP
TOKYO (AFP) - Floods and landslides following torrential rain in western Japan have killed at least two people and prompted one city to advise more than 80,000 people to flee their homes, officials said on Sunday.
One man was confirmed dead in Kyoto city early on Sunday after he was swept away by a flooded river while trying to build a sandbag barrier, Kyoto prefectural officials said.
In nearby Ishikawa prefecture, the body of a 74-year-old woman was pulled from her house after a landslide, national broadcaster NHK said.
Western and central Japan were Sunday still being battered by heavy rain that started Friday.
Fukuchiyama City in Kyoto prefecture experienced rainfall of 303mm during the 24 hours to early Sunday, a record for the city, according to the Japan Meteorological Agency.
The municipality issued an evacuation advisory - a recommendation that is different from an order to evacuate - to all 80,860 residents, as major parts of the city were submerged by waist-high water.
Heavy rain was expected to continue through Monday in western to central Japan.

A landslide at Tamba city in Hyogo prefecture near Kyoto destroyed a house where a 73year-old female resident was rescued Sunday.
A search was continuing for her 79-year-old husband, NHK said.
Police in the central prefecture of Gifu found two of three climbers who had been swept away by a flooded river in the Hida Mountains, the Yomiuri Shimbun said.
Their condition was not immediately known.
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