With Southwest Monsoon gradually covering almost all the Northeastern states a little before time, parts of Assam, Mizoram, Manipur and Tripura are reeling under flash floods and road closures. Heavy rains across Northeast in the past 24 hours have led to flash floods and landslides in several places.
Assam: With Kids on Back, Residents Wade Through Flooded Roads to Arrive at Schools
Incessant rainfall on Tuesday night caused rapid flooding in the southern part of Bokakhat subdivision of Assam’s Golaghat district. The rise in water level of the Diphlu river, a tributary of the Brahmaputra originating from Karbi Anglong Hills and passing through Kaziranga National Park, has submerged at least 10 revenue villages in Bokakhat. According to reports, almost 500 affected people are living at a single relief camp in Borkhola LP School.
Heavy downpour has inundated a major stretch of the National Highway 37 in Latabari area. Four teams of the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) assisted by the district administration are engaged in rescue and relief operations.
“We are prepared to tackle the situation. We have asked for more boats from Kaziranga. If need arises, more relief camps will be opened. A part of NH-37 remains closed for now. SDRF teams are helping in rescue operations. The whole area is under close flood watch,” said Vivek Shyam, sub-divisional officer (civil).
Meanwhile, flood affected villagers are worried about the availability of safe drinking water and adequate food at the relief camp.
“There has been no supply of drinking water and bread to the relief camp yet. We demand of the administration to make immediate arrangements,” said Ashim Bora, one of the affected villagers at Kolakhua.
A collapsed culvert at Amlokhi area has disrupted road links, leaving nearly 1,500 people stranded.
Waterlogging has also been reported at the Centre for Wildlife Rehabilitation and Conservation (CWRC), the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW)-Wildlife Trust of India (WTI) wildlife care facility supported by Assam Forest Department at Panbari near Kaziranga National Park. The approach road to the facility remains submerged in rain water.
In Gohpur, an overflowing Chatrang river, a tributary of the Brahmaputra flowing from neighbouring Arunachal, has inundated 3-4 villages in the district. The dyke along the river was breached at Balubari area early Wednesday morning. Villagers blamed it on sub-standard construction work that led to the breaching of the embankment.
The road link connecting over a dozen villages along the Assam-Arunachal border remain cut off due to rains. Schools remained opened even as elders were seen carrying little children to safety on their backs.
Manipur: Holiday Declared for Schools, Government Offices
The Manipur government declared a holiday for all government offices and educational institutions except essential services, flood control and revenue department on Tuesday following flash floods.
Heavy rains have resulted in landslides at several places along the Imphal Jiribam National Highway 37. Vehicular traffic came to a halt at NH-37 between Kotlen and Tupul, while the road leading to K Senam village, 40km from Imphal, remain cut off due to landslides.
The All India Radio, Imphal also stopped its transmission temporarily due to the flood waters flowing into the studio complex. According to the Water Resources Department, the rivers Imphal, Thoubal, Lilong, Iril, Nambul and Nambol are flowing above the danger level. Among other places, Kangpokpi recorded 36mm rainfall while Jiribam recorded 39.2mm rainfall till the filing of this report on Wednesday.
The Relief and Disaster Management Department has cautioned all Deputy Commissioners to keep a flood and landslide watch for the next couple of days. The Meteorological (MeT) department has predicted heavy downpour in some parts of Manipur till June 15.
Imphal East District Deputy Commissioner Th Chitra Devi issued a notification on Tuesday, directing all departments concerned to be fully prepared in the wake of heavy floods.
(With inputs from Noren Ningombam)
Mizoram: Three-digit Rains Recorded in Past 48 Hours, Schools Closed for 2 Days
More than 900 families have been evacuated to safe areas in Mizoram due to heavy rainfall in past 48 hours, triggering floods and landslides. Rescue operations by the District Emergency Operation are in progress with assistance from local NGOs and police. The affected families have been shifted to temporary shelters in schools and community halls.
A massive landslide that occurred near Serchhip town on Thursday has cut off National Highway-54. Both the roads connecting Serchhip to south Mizoram have been cut off.
There were no reports of casualty, however, a number of vehicle and passengers are stranded on the highway. Three houses near the landslide area in Serchhip have been evacuated to safer areas. With at least 200 metres of the road being cut off, the town is currently inaccessible from south Mizoram. However, there is an alternate route towards Lunglei district.
Schools have been closed for two days following heavy floods. Lunglei district has been the worst affected in the first spate of floods – 175 houses have been submerged in Tlabung town and hundreds displaced. Moreover, at least 480 houses in several villages of Lunglei remain inundated.
According to Mizoram Disaster Management and Rehabilitation department, 88 houses were submerged in Kolasib district. The border town of Bairabi has been badly affected. At least 260 houses at Kanghmun village in Mamit district remain flooded.
A visual of a flooded area in Mamit district (News18)
Meanwhile, the road connecting Aizawl to Lengpui airport has been blocked since Tuesday with PWD authorities working overtime to clear the road of debris. A number of vehicles have been stranded on National Highway 54.
Communication remains snapped because of power failure in several villages. The number of affected families are expected to be higher. Aizawl recorded 148 mm rain on Monday while Lengpui recorded 104mm.
(With inputs from Embassy Lawbei)
Tripura: 3,000 People Left Stranded, More Rains Likely in 24 hours
At least 3,000 people have been left stranded in Tripura with torrential rains in the last 24 hours bringing the state to a standstill. Official sources said around 50 relief camps have been set up for flood-affected people with several low lying areas still remaining submerged.
Vehicular movement on the national highway was disrupted due to heavy landslides at the Atharamura hill range. PWD authorities were engaged till late Tuesday night to clear debris and make the road operational.
The Teliamura, Kanchanpur, Kumarghat, Sabroom and Sonamura subdivisions have been worst affected by heavy downpour. Kailashahar in Unakoti dictrict recorded 137 mm rain on Monday.
(With inputs from Tanmoy Chakraborty)
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