Fresh reports reaching the desk of Africa Daily News, New York have revealed that some heavy monsoon rains and landslides have led to the death of almost 50 people in Nepal and India in recent days.
It has been reported in western Nepal that at least 22 people have died after landslides have also buried more than 100 houses on Friday, police official Narayan Dangi told AFP and eleven people have also been left seriously injured, including three airlifted to hospital by army helicopter.
“Rescue teams are still searching for one missing person,” Dangi said.
A major relief operation is also underway with the police and army clearing some of the debris and distributing food, tents and clothes.
In another report, over the border in the northern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, heavy rains have killed 26 people since Friday, officials said. The fatalities have also included nine labourers who were unfortunately buried alive when a wall under construction in the state capital Lucknow has collapsed on their huts, according to a government statement.
The annual monsoon brings South Asia 70-80 percent of its annual rain but it also brings death and destruction, with nearly 1,400 people killed in Pakistan in recent weeks.
No fewer than seven people have been reported dead and five others injured after a landslide at an illegal gold mine in Indonesia buried an estimated 20 people, officials have confirmed.
The victims were mining gold on a bare hillside when the landslide triggered by heavy rain struck the area on the west of Borneo island, in West Kalimantan province.
Local police said they had managed to identify four of the recovered bodies and the search for other victims continues with help from local people and the victims’ families.
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Unlicensed mines are common across the mineral-rich Southeast Asian archipelago where abandoned sites attract locals who scrounge for leftover gold ore without using proper safety equipment.
Mining accidents occur frequently in Indonesia due to landslides, especially during monsoons.
