India rescuers hunt for survivors as flood, landslide toll rise

Mumbai / New Delhi: Rescue groups in India struggled by means of thick sludge and particles on Saturday to succeed in dozens of submerged houses because the dying toll from landslides and accidents attributable to torrential monsoon rain rose to 125.

Maharashtra state is being hit by the heaviest rain in July in 4 a long time, specialists say. Downpours lasting a number of days have severely affected the lives of a whole bunch of 1000’s, whereas main rivers are at risk of bursting their banks.

In Taliye, about 180 km southeast of the monetary capital of Mumbai, the dying toll rose to 42 with the restoration of 4 extra our bodies after landslides flattened most houses within the village, a senior Maharashtra authorities official mentioned.

“About 40 individuals are nonetheless trapped. The opportunity of rescuing them alive is skinny as they’ve been trapped in mud for greater than 36 hours,” mentioned the official, who declined to be recognized as he isn’t authorised to speak to the media.

Harsh climate has hit a number of components of the world in current weeks, with floods in China and Western Europe and warmth waves in North America, elevating new fears concerning the affect of local weather change.

Components of India’s west coast have acquired as much as 594mm of rain, forcing authorities to maneuver individuals out of weak areas as they launched water from dams about to overflow. The hill station of Mahabaleshwar recorded its highest ever rainfall – 60cm in 24 hours.

Rescuers have been looking for victims of landslides in 4 different locations within the state, the official mentioned.

“Round 90,000 individuals have been rescued from flood affected areas,” the Maharashtra authorities mentioned in a press release, as authorities launched water from overflowing dams.

Hundreds of vehicles have been caught for greater than 24 hours on a freeway linking Mumbai with the southern expertise hub of Bengaluru, with the street submerged in some locations.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi mentioned he was in anguish over the lack of lives.

“The scenario in Maharashtra on account of heavy rains is being carefully monitored and help is being offered to the affected,” Modi mentioned on Twitter on Friday.

Within the southern state of Telangana, heavy rain brought about flooding within the state capital of Hyderabad and different low-lying areas.

Indian environmentalists have warned that local weather change and indiscriminate development in fragile coastal areas might result in extra disasters.

“The rain fury that lashed Mahabaleshwar … is a robust warning towards any extra tampering with the ecologically fragile Western Ghats,” atmosphere economist Devendra Sharma mentioned on Twitter referring to the vary of hills alongside India’s west coast.