Flash flooding and landslides kill 22 in north-east India
Landslides and flash flooding triggered by days of torrential monsoon rains in India's north east have killed at least 22 people.
Five people, including three from a single family, were killed on Saturday when their homes were buried in a mudslide in Assam state's Guwahati city, an official flood bulletin said.
In neighbouring Arunachal Pradesh state, which borders China, seven people were killed on Friday when their vehicle was swept away by floodwaters. Two others drowned in a separate incident in the state.
Eight people were killed in the states of Mizoram, Tripura and Meghalaya in the last 24 hours due to floods and mudslides brought on by the rains, according to official figures.
Meanwhile, in Assam, authorities disconnected the electricity in several areas to reduce the risk of electrocution, state chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said.
Heavy rains also led to flooding in many urban areas of Assam's capital city of Guwahati, leading to long power outages on Friday night and prompting authorities to shut schools and colleges on Saturday.
India's weather agency has forecast more heavy rain in the region in the coming days.
India's annual June-September monsoon season offers respite from intense summer heat. But the rains that are crucial for crops planted during the season often cause extensive damage, particularly in the north east, which is considered one of the most vulnerable regions to climate change.
Scientists say monsoons are becoming more erratic because of extreme weather and global warming, leading to frequent landslides and flash floods in India's Himalayan north.
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BHUBANESWAR/DHAKA (Reuters) -At least 34 people have died in India's northeastern region after heavy floods caused landslides over the last four days, authorities and media said on Monday, and the weather department predicted more heavy rain. More than a thousand tourists trapped in the Himalayan state of Sikkim were being evacuated on Monday, a government statement said, and army rescue teams were pressed into service in Meghalaya state to rescue more than 500 people stranded in flooded areas. In neighbouring Bangladesh, at least four members of a family were killed in a landslide in the northeastern district of Sylhet, while hundreds of shelters have been opened across the hilly districts of Rangamati, Bandarban, and Khagrachhari on Sunday. Authorities have warned of further landslides and flash floods, urging residents in vulnerable areas to remain alert. India's northeast and Bangladesh are prone to torrential rains that set off deadly landslides and flash floods, affecting millions of people every year. Roads and houses in Assam's Silchar city were flooded, visuals from news agency ANI showed, and fallen trees littered the roads. "We are facing a lot of challenges. I have a child, their bed is submerged in water. What will we do in such a situation? We keep ourselves awake throughout the night," Sonu Devi, a resident of Silchar, told ANI.
