At least 101 people have been killed after last week's torrential rain triggered multiple landslides and flooding across Nepal, with rescuers finding four more bodies on Monday, officials said. Meanwhile, fears grew of a possible cholera outbreak, a potentially deadly disease spread by eating or drinking food or water contaminated by human feces, due to lack of clean drinking water.
After three days of constant incessant rain, entire villages were left devastated, stranding thousands and damaging roads across the country's western plains bordering India, Agence France-Presse reported.
On Sunday, more than 3,400 workers and four helicopters laden with food, medicine and medical workers were deployed by the government to rescue stranded people and deliver emergency supplies, said Jhankanath Dhakal, chief of Nepal's National Emergency Operation Centre.
Officials in Nepal confirmed that the death toll from landslides and flooding has reached 101, with more than 126 people still missing, Voice of America reported. "We have found three more bodies this morning, bringing the total death toll to 101," Dhakal told AFP, adding that another body had been recovered overnight.
However, with water levels gradually receding, rescue workers will be able to use land routes instead of relying entirely on helicopters, which have managed to evacuate thousands of people into temporary shelters.
The worst affected is Surkhet district where 28 people have been killed in floods and landslides, with 98 others missing. Bardiya (17) and Dang (14) are the other districts in the country's mid-western region with high casualty figures. "We are concerned about water-borne diseases spreading, especially cholera, and have deployed health personnel to distribute water purification tablets and medicines," Dhakal said.
Prime Minister Sushil Koirala has issued an appeal to all Nepalis living in the country and abroad to help in rescue, relief and rehabilitation of those affected by floods and landslides. "To add to the efforts taken by the government to help those affected by natural disasters, I appeal for immediate help from all Nepali brothers and sisters in Nepal and outside," said Koirala in his appeal.
The deaths come two weeks after the worst landslide in more than a decade smashed into villages near Katmandu earlier this month, killing 156 people.
Hundreds of people die every year in floods and landslides during the monsoon season in South Asia, AFP reported.
