Incessant rainfall triggers floods and landslides disrupting normal life in many districts

Nepal, July 6: The entire country is experiencing incessant rainfall due to the influence of Monsoon winds today.

Likewise, the Flood Forecasting Division under the Department of Hydrology and Meteorology has urged the general public to adopt high-security alert stating that there would be a risk of floods in different parts of the country up to coming Sunday.

As there is a possibility of heavy rainfall till Sunday, the water level in the rivers may increase causing a risk of flooding. Department’s flood expert and hydrologist Engineer Bijay Dhukuchu said that most of the small rivers flowing through Ilam, Jhapa, Morang, Lamjung, Kaski, Palpa, Nawalparasi East and adjoining districts will increase.

The Department of Hydrology and Meteorology forecasts that this afternoon, there will be light to moderate rain in many places across all provinces, with some areas in Bagmati, Gandaki, and Lumbini provinces likely to experience heavy rain.

Tonight, the weather is expected to be cloudy nationwide, with chances of light to moderate rain accompanied by thunder and lightning in Koshi and Madhesh provinces, and across many areas in other provinces.

Heavy rain is anticipated in a few places in several provinces, including Koshi, Bagmati, Gandaki, Lumbini, Karnali, and Sudurpaschim.

Due to continuous rainfall over the past few days, the Kaligandaki Corridor is facing blockages from landslides. Landslides in the Binamare area of Jaimini Municipality, Baglung have blocked traffic from Chisti, Jaidi, Arjewa, and Binamare to Baglung Bazaar. Efforts to clear the roads are ongoing amidst ongoing landslides.

Similarly, the Maldhunga-Beni road in Parbat has also been blocked due to landslides near Maldhunga, leaving travelers from Myagdi and Mustang stranded at Khaniaghat. In Mugu, Jumla, and Humla districts, air services have been disrupted for four days due to heavy rainfall, forcing passengers to seek alternative travel arrangements.

In Makwanpur, the Hetauda-Dakchhinkali roadway has resumed traffic after a landslide obstructed it at Chhepare of Indrasarobar rural municipality-2. However, many roads linking Hetauda to Kathmandu remain blocked due to incessant rain since Friday, with efforts underway to clear landslides at various points.

To manage the rising water levels in rivers and streams across Kathmandu Valley due to heavy rainfall, the Nepal Police have started riverbank patrolling. Senior Superintendent of Police Dinesh Raj Mainali mentioned that this measure aims to prevent floods and ensure safety along river corridors.

In Dolakha district, torrential rainfall triggered floods, causing one person to go missing and three houses to be swept away at Gaurishankar rural municipality-9. The missing person, Jangmu Sherpa, 64, was swept away by the flooded Rolwaling rivulet on Friday night.

Overall, normal life in many districts has been disrupted by the incessant rainfall, leading to incidents of inundation and landslides in some places.

Similarly, the vehicular movements have resumed along the BP and Araniko highways, which were earlier obstructed due to landslips. The mud deposits on the highways were removed with joint efforts of locals and police persons, thereby paving way for one-way traffic.