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KATHMANDU, June 19: Eighteen people have been killed and over 14 missing in floods and landslides in several parts of the western region on Tuesday.
The torrential downpour that lashed the country for the last three days also incurred a huge loss of properties, rendering thousands of people homeless. According to the Home Ministry, 18 people have been confirmed killed. The ministry also said the death toll could increase. [break]
Of those killed, seven died in Dailekh, five in Baitadi, one in Achham, one in Rautahat and two in Doti districts and two others remain unaccounted for. Similarly, of the total 14 people missing, 12 went missing in Kalikot and one each in Baglung and Mustang districts.
According to Republica"s Dailekh correspondent Govinda KC, seven members of a family died after their two houses at Rati Malika VDC-2 collapsed due to rains. Police informed that houseowner Mohan Kumal, 30, his wife Tulasa and their five children -- daughters Gita and Bishna and sons Nagendra, Khagendra, and Ganesh -- were crushed to death. The locals had pulled the bodies out of the debris as police reached the spot late due to the rain. According to police, Mohan had built the house recently after separating from his joint family.
Meanwhile, the rampaging Mahakali River gushed into four market areas situated between Jitekada in Kalikot and Tallo Dungheshwar in Dailekh. Jitekada, Rakam Karnali, Ramghat and Tallo Dhungeshwar remain inundated. The raging river eroded agricultural lands and submerged over 35 houses in the area.
Deputy Superintendent of Police at District Police Office Dailekh, Prajwal Maharjan, informed that 25 huts belonging to the Badi community near Tallo Dhungeshwar bazaar have been completely destroyed by the flood. ´We have been collecting details of life and property losses in the flood affected areas in the district. It will take some more days to come up with detailed information,´ said Maharjan. Likewise, as per the information provided by police, the Ramghat River swept away five houses at Ramghat bazaar at Sattala-1 while 25 houses in the area were inundated.
Furthermore, 28 families have been displaced and two people were injured due to the landslide at Buchi village of Jagannath VDC-5. Two houses in the village were swept away Tuesday morning, according to Kabiraj Khatri, a local.
Landslides have also blocked the Dailekh-Surkhet section of the Karnali Highway. According to District Police Office, Dailekh, passengers bound for Jumla and Kalikot have been stranded due to the road blockage. Police have informed that landslides have occurred in 20-30 places along the road section.
Similarly, our correspondent Barun Paneru from Dadeldhura district reported that five people were killed after a landslide at Kholakhedpe of Siddeshwar VDC-9 in Baitadi swept way a house on Monday night. Five bodies have been recovered from the rubble after the landslide ripped through the house belonging to Ram Singh Aire. According to police, the bodies of Ram Singh"s wife Kalawati, 34; his brother"s wife, Sita, 26, and her 3-year-old daughter Bindeshwari and one-year-old son Arjun were dug out from the rubble. Ram Singh"s 12-year-old son Parmeshwar, who was missing, was later found dead.
Police and the locals have been searching for the missing but the incessant rain has been impeding rescue efforts. In yet another incident, a woman named Dharam Kali Majhi of Bamgha VDC-2, was killed in the flood in Badhikhola in Achham district. Likewise, two people died after being swept away by the swollen Rauwa River. Their identities were yet to be ascertained till late Tuesday night.
In Dipayal of Doti district, continuous downpour has put over 50 houses around the Seti bridge at risk of flood damange while the gushing Mahakali River has inundated over two dozen villages in the inner Tarai area of Dadeldhura district. Over 52 families from Sankurna and Tapapanikuda village of Jogbuda VDC and Parigaun of Sirsha VDC in Dadeldhura district have been displaced.
Likewise, our Baglung correspondent Dilip Paudel reported that two people, one each in Mustang and Baglung, went missing in the flood. Police informed that Gyanu BK of Baglung Dhorpatan and an unidentified man working as a laborer remain missing in separate flooding incidents.
In Mustang district, Tiri Khola in Kagbeni VDC-9 swept away two houses and 26 livestock sheds, according to Chura Bahadur Karki, police inspector in the district. Likewise, two more houses were destroyed by the landslide in Dudilaviti VDC-2, Chauke in Baglung district while four houses collapsed at Ghatan VDC-8 in Myagdi district. No human loss has been reported in the incidents. Besides, hundreds of passengers remain stranded after landslides blocked the Baglung-Burtibang road section.
Our Surkhet district correspondent Kalendra Sejuwal has reported that at least 12 people remain missing after flooding in the Sanigad River in Kalikot district Tuesday. According to Chief District Officer Jagat Basnet, the river also swept away 20 houses in Murma and Sipakhana VDC, which are located one day"s trek away from the district headquarters Manma. The flood that occurred at around 3 am Tuesday had entered the villages along the river.
CDO Basnet informed that Krishna Neupane, an overseer at the District Development Committee and sub overseer Takka Bahadur Bam, and HELVETAS engineer Karan Dhami, are among 12 people missing in the flood. Basnet further informed that two bodies have been recovered but they have yet to be identified.
Furthermore, Flood in Seti River swept away 7 houses while 7 more houses has been buried under a landslide in the district. According to Republica Correspondent, Jagat Khadka in Bajhag, The rain-swollen river took away 7 houses at Kotdewal-8 while 7 houses at Sainpasela in Malumela VDC have been buried under the landslide rubble. According to the police, 81 households across the district have been displaced due to the rain induced disasters. Lal Bakaiya river in Rautaha killed a person on Tuesday. The dead has been identified as Jyanarayan Thakur, 30, of Bhasedhawa-1 in the district.
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