Nepal has suffered devastating losses after flooding and landslides across the region caused the death of at least 201 people as dozens of others continue to be missing with rescuers scrambling to search for the victims.
The death toll in the area rose to 104 on Friday after officials reported 27 additional fatalities since Wednesday evening. A spokesperson for Nepal's ministry of home affairs, Phanindra Mani Pokharel, revealed the numbers on Friday morning.
Devastating Floods, Landslides
As of Friday, the total number of deaths rose to 201 across Nepal and the Indian states of Kerala and Uttarakhand. Residents first observed heavy rainfall on Monday after a low-pressure system formed over northern India and brought moisture from the Bay of Bengal.
Uttarakhand residents have suffered 70 fatalities after the heavy rainfall caused massive flooding in the northern Indian state. The news was confirmed by Uttarakhand's director general of police Ashok Kumar.
About half of Nepal's total deaths were reported in Uttarakhand's Nainital district, which is considered to be the worst-affected region. The situation comes as rescuers are struggling to complete operations in Uttarakhand, CNN reported.
On Friday, Nepalese authorities reported that there were dozens of people who were missing due to the flooding and landslides caused by the heavy rainfall. Many survivors have noted that they have not yet received any form of government help after the disaster.
Police spokesperson Basanta Bahadur Kunwar previously reported the uptick of fatalities in the region as dozens of others were found to be injured. The flooding and landslides have destroyed houses and left many residents grasping for assistance.
The heavy rainfall has fortunately receded in some regions and authorities expect the weather to slowly improve across the Himalayan nation over the weekend. At least 88 people died in India due to the catastrophic weather phenomena that also flooded roads, destroyed bridges, and caused landslides that washed away homes, Fox News reported.
Hundreds of Fatalities
Nainital is a popular tourist spot in the Himalayan nation and is the place where residents observed the town's main lake breaking its banks. The resulting flood submerged the main thoroughfare and damaged bridges and rail tracks.
Rescuers from India's paramilitary National Disaster Response Force who were in the nearby Chamoli district continued to sift through debris following devastating landslides caused by heavy rainfall. On Thursday, Amit Shah, India's federal interior minister, traveled to the affected regions and surveyed the extent of the damage brought by the disasters.
A statement from the chief minister's office of India, about 42 people were reported dead in the last week in the southern state of Kerala. The incident was brought about by annual monsoon rains that usually ran from June to September.
"Crops and homes have been wiped out, which is a severe blow to families already grappling with the devastating fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic. The people of Nepal and India are sandwiched between the pandemic and worsening climate disasters, heavily impacting millions of lives and livelihoods," said a senior official at the International Federation of Red Crescent Societies, Azmat Ulla, Reuters reported.
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