Thunderstorms, landslips kill 20 in northeast India

Almost 800 villages affected in Assam thunderstorms; many parts of Arunachal Pradesh cut off due to landslides

GUWAHATI:

Thunderstorms in Assam and rain-induced landslips in Arunachal Pradesh have killed at least 20 people over the last 72 hours.

Officials in Arunachal Pradesh’s Kurung Kumey district said three members of a family were buried alive following a landslide in Sulung Taping village. The victims included an eight-year-old boy.

“It has been raining heavily since April 17 and landslides have cut off the district headquarters besides disrupting the supply of water and electricity,” the district’s Deputy Commissioner, Bengia Nighee, said.

Many houses and office buildings in Koloriang, the district headquarters, have either been damaged or are placed precariously.

Many small towns in the Anjaw district have also been cut off because of roadblocks triggered by heavy rainfall. Many streams are overflowing, adding to the difficulty in clearing the debris from vital roads, officials said.

In Assam, thunderstorms killed three people — one each in Dhemaji, Morigaon and Jorhat district — on Monday night. This took the death toll since April 16 to 17.