Kathmandu: The death toll from floods and landslides caused by heavy rainfall in Nepal has risen to 151, with 56 people still missing. The government has announced a three-day closure of schools in response to the disaster.
Since Friday, large areas of eastern and central Nepal have been flooded, with flash floods affecting various regions. In the Kathmandu Valley, where 37 people have died, floods have brought traffic and daily life to a halt. Witnesses reported that they had not seen flooding and devastation of this scale in the valley in the past 40-45 years.
National highways have been blocked, causing hundreds of people to be stranded. At least 322 houses and 16 bridges have been destroyed, with over 20,000 security personnel deployed for rescue efforts. So far, around 3,626 people have been rescued, and the operation is ongoing.
Home Ministry spokesperson Rishiram Tiwari mentioned that all available resources are being used to reopen highway sections affected by landslides.
Nineteen people died when a bus was buried by a landslide in Dhading district, near Kathmandu, while five more were killed in Bhaktapur when a house collapsed. Television footage showed police in knee-high boots using tools to clear mud and recover 16 bodies from two buses that had been swept away by a landslide on a major route to Kathmandu.
