KATHMANDU: Residents of Nepal’s flood-hit capital returned to their mud-filled homes on Sunday to survey the wreckage of devastating floods that have killed at least 151 people across the Himalayan republic.
Deadly rain-related floods and landslides are common across South Asia during the monsoon season from June to September, but experts say climate change is increasing their frequency and severity.
Entire neighborhoods in Kathmandu were inundated over the weekend with flash floods reported in rivers running through the capital and extensive damage to highways linking the city to the rest of Nepal.
said home ministry spokesman Rishi Ram Tiwari AFP that bulldozers were being used to clear several highways blocked by debris, cutting off Kathmandu from the rest of the country.
“More than 3,000 people have been rescued,” he added.
At least 36 of the dead were in three vehicles and were buried alive when a landslide hit a highway south of Kathmandu, Nepali police spokesman Dan Bahadur Karki said. AFP.
The valley in which the capital is located recorded 240 millimeters (9.4 inches) of rain in the 24 hours to Saturday morning, according to the country’s meteorological office. Kathmandu Post Newspaper.
It was the highest rainfall recorded in Kathmandu since at least 1970, the report said.
Chest deep water
The Bagmati River and its numerous tributaries that run through Kathmandu burst their banks, flooding homes and vehicles around midnight on Saturday.
Residents tried to wade through chest-deep water to reach higher ground.
Bishnu Maya Shrestha, who lived in another flooded area of Kathmandu, said they had to cut off the roofs of their houses to escape.
“We jumped from one roof to another to be safe and finally they came in boats to save us,” said Shrestha AFP.
More than 3,000 security personnel were deployed to assist rescue efforts with helicopters and motor boats.
Rescue crews were using rafts to pull survivors to safety.
Domestic flights to and from Kathmandu resumed by Sunday morning after weather forced a complete halt from Friday night, with more than 150 departures cancelled.
The summer monsoon brings South Asia 70-80% of its annual rainfall.
Monsoon rains from June to September bring widespread death and destruction every year across South Asia, but the number of deadly floods and landslides has increased in recent years.
More than 260 people have died in Nepal in rain-related disasters this year.
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