Northeast flood situation remains grim; toll rises to 36, over 5.5L people affected

Guwahati/Gangtok/Itanagar: The flood situation across the Northeast remained grim on Monday, with the death toll from incessant rains, flash floods and landslides climbing to 36 and more than 5.5 lakh people affected across multiple states. Assam bore the brunt of the deluge with 11 fatalities and over 5.35 lakh people displaced across 22 districts, even as rivers swelled above danger levels and key transport links were snapped. Other severely impacted states included Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Sikkim and Manipur, where widespread devastation, including loss of lives, missing soldiers, and mass evacuations, painted a bleak picture of the monsoon’s fury.

Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma visited Lakhimpur district, among the worst-hit areas, and assured the affected people of all possible assistance.

Road, rail and ferry services remained affected in the state due to heavy rain in several areas.

In Sikkim, three army personnel died and six soldiers went missing after a landslide hit a military camp at Chhaten, a defence official said on Monday.

The landslide, which occurred at 7 pm on Sunday near Lachen town in Mangan district, was triggered by heavy rainfall in the area, he said.

“... A catastrophic landslide occurred following intense and continuous rainfall in the region causing death of three combatants, identified as Havaldar Lakhwinder Singh, Lance Naik Munish Thakur, and Porter Abhishek Lakhada,” the official said in a statement.

“Rescue teams are working round-the-clock under challenging conditions to locate the six missing personnel,” he said.

Altogether 1,678 tourists, stuck in north Sikkim’s Lachung and Chungthang towns following rain-triggered landslides there, were evacuated, and more than 100 others are still stranded in Lachen, DGP Akshay Sachdeva said.

Incessant rainfall since May 29 triggered landslides in several parts of Mangan district, causing partial damage to bridges in Phidang and Sangkalang and disrupting road connectivity for several days.

With rainfall exceeding 130 mm, major damage occurred along the routes to key tourist destinations, including Lachen, Lachung, Gurudongmar, the Valley of Flowers and Zero Point.

The tourism and civil aviation department, in an advisory, has urged all tourists to exercise caution while travelling to Sikkim and plan their trips based on the latest road and weather updates.

Sikkim Chief Secretary R Telang chaired a high-level meeting to review the disaster situation in Mangan district.

During the meeting, key issues such as road blockages, evacuation of stranded tourists and urgent restoration of essential services like power, roads and telecommunications were focused on, the Information and Public Relations Department said in a statement.

In Manipur, more than 19,000 people have been affected by floods as several rivers overflowed and breached embankments, following heavy rainfall in the northeastern state for the last four days, officials said on Monday.

At least 3,365 houses have been damaged, 103 localities affected, and 19,811 people hit by floods triggered by torrential rains during the period, they said.

Thirty-one relief camps, mostly in Imphal East district, have been opened to mitigate the hardships of the people who have been evacuated from their homes and submerged localities.

With one more death reported from Lohit district, the toll in landslides and floods in Arunachal Pradesh rose to 10 even as incessant monsoon rain lashed the state on Monday, officials said.

According to the State Emergency Operation Centre (SEOC), 938 people in 156 villages in 23 districts have been affected by the monsoon deluge.

Governor Lt General K T Parnaik (Retd) has expressed deep sorrow over the loss of lives and extended heartfelt condolences to the bereaved families. He urged residents to remain alert, especially in vulnerable and landslide-prone areas.

With major rivers and their tributaries flowing above danger levels, flood-like conditions and landslides have also been reported in West Kameng, Kamle, Lower and Upper Subansiri, Papum Pare, Dibang Valley, Lower Dibang Valley, Lohit, Changlang, Kra Daadi, Kurung Kumey, and Longding districts of the state.

The flood situation in Tripura has started improving as not much rain was received on Monday and the rivers have started flowing much below the danger mark, officials said.

However, over 10,000 people continued to remain in government relief camps.

“Water is receding across Tripura and the flood situation is improving, with rivers flowing much below the danger level. But the inmates, who took refuge in government relief camps, continue to stay there,” Disaster Management in-charge Sarat Das said.

The state administration has opened 66 relief camps across affected districts, currently sheltering 2,926 families or 10,813 individuals. West Tripura district has the highest number of operational camps, with 50 shelters housing 2,352 families, he said.

All schools across Mizoram remained shut on Monday due to heavy rain that triggered landslides, mudslides, rockfalls and waterlogging in different parts of the state, an official said.

Earlier, schools were closed across the state for two days on May 29 and May 30.

At least five people, including three Myanmarese refugees, have been killed so far due to landslides, house collapses and other calamities triggered by heavy rain that lashed the state since May 24.