By Our Reporter
Torrential rains from Sunday evening caused devastating floods and landslides across the country, killing at least 13 persons, submerging several settlements in the Tarai and the Kathmandu Valley, burying houses and damaging roads in the hills in two days.
According to the Home Ministry, seven persons were killed in separate incidents of natural disasters in various places of the country on Monday and 6 on Tuesday, two of them in Kathmandu.
The deaths were reported from Darchula, Tanahun’ Gorkha, Dhading, Makwanpur and Kathmandu.
With the deaths of Monday and Tuesday, the total death toll from monsoon rains reached 123 after monsoon formally entered Nepal on June 12
Landslides and floods triggered by heavy rains blocked major highways, including the Prithvi Highway that links Kathmandu with the Terai in several places.
In Kathmandu, over a dozen temporary huts built by landless squatters on the bank of the Bagmati River bank near Thapathali and Sudarighat of Kirtipur Municipality were inundated. Two were buried to death in Tokha on Tuesday. Hanumante inundated three dozen houses in Bhaktapur.
In Dhading, floods triggered by heavy rains swept away a bridge along with the Prithvi Highway severing connection of Kathmandu with the Terai. A bridge over Mauwa River connecting Chitwan and Dhading districts collapsed Monday afternoon.
Landslides have obstructed the Prithvi Highway in about 50 places in Dhading district alone. However, the highway was brought into operation for one-way traffic Tuesday evening.
Likewise, the Kalupande Highway linking Dhadingbesi with the Highway was also obstructed by landslides.
Four persons were killed in Dhading with three in Tripurasundari Gaunpalika and in Gajuri Gaunpalika in landslides.
Several settlements in Sarlahi submerged following a few hours of a downpour on Monday Tuesday. Birgunj also submerged in floodwater on Tuesday.
In Darchula, two persons died after being buried in rubbles of houses as a landslide hit Naugadh Rural Municipality-6 of Darchula district on Monday. school.
Similarly, a woman died when a landslide buried her at Gandaki Rural Municipality-4 in Fujel Kaidi of the district.
Likewise, in Tanahu, two members of a family went missing when a landslide at Simalgairaha in Bhanu Municipality-9 buried them on Monday.
Meanwhile, over 200 houses were waterlogged after floods of the Saptakoshi and Khando Rivers entered human settlements in Saptari.
The Narayani River in Devghat of Chitwan district and Kankai River Jhapa crossed the danger marks on Monday evening.
The water level in the Saptakoshi River has reached the highest of the recent year due to regular rainfall, prompting the authorities to flash the red light and a red flag.
The water flow recorded at 12:30 pm on Tuesday was the highest of the year. As per the control room, the flow was 334,900 cusec.
The increasing flow of water and the rise on the level has increased the risk leading the authorities to open 48 of the 56 floodgates of Koshi Barage.
Similarly, water levels crossed the danger mark in the Kankai and other rivers in Jhapa and Narayani in Chitwan.
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