28 killed in flash floods, landslides over two days as heavy rains pound Northeast

At least 28 people have been killed in the northeast over the past two days by flash floods and landslides triggered by heavy rain in the region.

Authorities in most of the states, especially Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram, Meghalaya, and Manipur, are on alert for any eventualities, especially after Friday’s downpour, which the weathermen said was triggered by a depression over Bangladesh.

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) in its latest bulletin issued a red alert for the region, including Assam, Meghalaya and Arunachal Pradesh, predicting heavy to very heavy rainfall to continue in the coming days.

Also read: 3 Myanmarese refugees among 4 killed in landslides as heavy rainfall lashes Mizoram

8 dead in Assam

Eight people have been killed in floods and landslides in Assam as incessant rainfall caused massive inundation in 17 districts, affecting over 78,000 people, officials said on Saturday.

Three districts in the western part of the state remained on 'red alert' and eight more were on 'orange alert', as per Regional Meteorological Centre (RMC) data, while rainwaters from upstream areas of Arunachal Pradesh and Meghalaya aggravated the flood situation in the state.

The Assam State Disaster Management Authority (ASDMA) said landslides claimed five lives, all in Kamrup Metropolitan district.

Massive waterlogging was reported in Guwahati with many localities remaining submerged for the second day, with rescue personnel shifting stranded people to safer places as residents abandoned their waterlogged houses with no water or power supply.

Urban Affairs Minister Jayanta Malla Baruah and top officials inspected the situation in different parts of the city to assess the prevailing situation and review the government's emergency response measures.

Also read: Mumbai witnesses slight respite after heavy downpour, flooding

Government sources told PTI that more than 58,000 people have been affected, while 1,224 flood-hit people have taken shelter in five relief camps. Another 11 relief distribution centres are also functional. Lakhimpur is the worst-hit district with more than 41,600 people affected.

Multiple agencies, including NDRF, SDRF, police, and fire and emergency services personnel, were pressed into relief and rescue operations, with people evacuated to safety from flood-affected areas.

9 killed in Arunachal, 5 in Mizoram

At least nine people are said to have been killed in Arunachal Pradesh. Seven were killed when the vehicle they were travelling in plunged into a gorge following a landslide on the National Highway 13 between Bana and Seppa in East Kameng district on Friday night. Two others were killed in another landslide-related incident in Lower Subansiri district, said a report in the Indian Express.

In Mizoram, at least five people have been reportedly killed in rain-related incidents.

The state has been experiencing heavy rain since Friday, triggering landslides and rockfalls at several places.

Also read: Heavy rains wreak havoc in Kerala, Karnataka; Mumbai too severely affected

An IMD report said Lawngtlai district received 205 mm of rainfall on Saturday, Khawzawl 184 mm, Hnahthial 130 and Aizawl 91 mm of rainfall.

At least 56 houses were damaged in 147 landslides across the state on Saturday, according to a bulletin by the state Emergency Operation Centre.

Sixty-three families were also evacuated to safer places due to landslides and floods, it said.

Landslides have also blocked national and intra-state highways at 69 locations, the bulletin said.

Officials also said that many travellers intending to travel to the southern part of the state were stranded in Serchhip town after landslides damaged a national highway.

Rains halt search for missing Indore couple

According to the Meghalaya State Disaster Management Authority, six people have died in the state in the past two days.

Meanwhile, the severe rains have stalled the search for the newlywed tourist couple from Indore who went missing in Meghalaya. The couple, Raja Raghuvanshi and Sonam Raghuvanshi, were last seen leaving Shillong towards Sohra on a two-wheeler.

While authorities had planned to search nearby rivers in the Sohra area for the couple, the rains have stalled the operation.

“We are hoping that the weather improves soon so we can resume the search with greater intensity,” an official told the Shillong Times.