Sunday, August 31, 2008

Nepal source of massive flood in Bihar, India

NY Times reports on the massive floods in Bihar state of India:
More than 2.1 million people and over 394 square miles have been affected by the flooding, the Bihar government said on Friday. About a quarter of a million people have been evacuated.

Evacuees may not be able to return to their homes, if those homes still exist, until fall, state government officials said. [...]

The breach in the dam that caused the flooding is eight miles inside Nepal, he said, and therefore difficult to gain access to and fix. “We are facing labor problems, law and order problems, and logistics problems,” he said.

The Nepalese government said that work to fix the break was under way, and that its officials were cooperating with the Indian government. The river has flooded its banks in Nepal as well, displacing tens of thousands of people.

About a quarter of a million homes in India have already been destroyed by the floods, Indian officials say.

Meanwhile, The Independent quotes Bihar's disaster management minister who says:

"Rains are killing our rescue and relief efforts."

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Map of India: Bihar state is light-blue color.

Bihar state map: From blogger Pratush who describes the extent of damage to towns and agriculture (green).

Detailed satelite images of flooding available at Disasters Charter


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