Nepal deploys rescuers after massive flood

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A massive flood swept through Nepal’s northern Rasuwa district on Wednesday, damaging roads and power infrastructure as authorities scrambled to assess the scale of the destruction.

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Videos shared by Nepal Police and others on social media showed torrents of muddy water crashing through mountain valleys in the Himalayan district bordering China.

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“We do not exactly know the extent of damage, but the flood is big, and it could have damaged many settlements,” Nepal Police spokesman Abi Narayan Kafle told AFP.

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“We have alerted people who are staying near the riverside to relocate… and deployed all our resources,” he said.

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Prime Minister Balendra Shah convened an emergency meeting of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority to take stock of the situation.

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“Work has started to take necessary steps in coordination with the medical team, scouts, and Red Cross,” Shah said in a social media post.

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The Nepal Army said it had deployed helicopters and disaster response personnel to the affected area.

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“The work of collecting details of the damage is underway,” it said in a statement.

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The Nepal Electricity Authority said about 430 megawatts of production capacity, including from hydropower and solar facilities, has been damaged.

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“The disaster has damaged the production, transmission and distribution facilities of the Authority… resulting in disruption of electricity supply,” it said.

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Several highways were also closed, authorities said.

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Monsoon rains from June to September regularly trigger deadly floods and landslides across South Asia.

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Scientists say climate change is increasing the frequency and intensity of extreme weather events in the region.

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AFP

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