In Nepal, 21 people have been killed, five remain missing and five others have been injured following four days of torrential rainfall, flooding and landslides.

 

According to the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority, or NDRRMA, landslides accounted for the majority of the casualties, claiming 14 lives and leaving five people missing. Floods caused four deaths, while three fatalities were attributed to continuous heavy rainfall. The severe weather has directly affected 247 families across the country, completely destroying 260 homes and partially damaging another 80.

 

The situation followed a low-pressure system originating in the Bay of Bengal, which brought heavy to excessive rainfall to several parts of Nepal from September 24 to 27.

 

In response to rising water levels and landslides, emergency teams have relocated around 3,000 residents from high-risk areas to safer locations. In the worst-affected mountain districts of Jajarkot, Myagdi and Sankhuwasabha, people who were trapped have been evacuated by emergency helicopters. The disaster authority estimated that around 9,000 foreign tourists and trekkers were in Nepal during the period of heavy rainfall.

 

This morning, authorities issued a warning for residents living along the Narayani River in central Nepal after the river crossed the nine-metre warning level and entered settlements. Highways leading to Chitwan, a major junction for travel across the country, also remain blocked due to landslides at several locations.

 

Meanwhile, a landslide in neighbouring Baglung district has claimed four more lives. In another disaster, two bodies have been recovered following an avalanche near the base camp of Mount Himlung Himal in Nepal’s high-altitude Manang district.