Floods ravage Assam as toll reaches 7

Respite from floods seemed far away for Assam on Monday, with the situation worsening as several areas in the upper districts of the state got submerged by the surging waters of the Brahmaputra river and its tributaries.

Owing to incessant rain in neighbouring Arunachal Pradesh during the past two days, the situation is expected to become even worse with water levels rising in rivers across Assam, including the Brahmaputra and its tributaries, which have been consistently flowing above the danger mark.

According to official sources, the death toll has gone up to seven  with two more deaths in Morigaon, apart from one each in Lakhimpur, Dhubri, Nalbari, Golaghat and Barpeta.
 Fifteen districts – Dhemaji, Jorhat, Dibrugarh, Golaghat, Sivasagar, Sonitpur, Lakhimpur, Nalbari, Barpeta, Bongaigaon, Morigaon, Kamrup, Dhubri, Kokrajhar and Karbi Anglong – have been hit hard by the current wave of floods.

Apart from the upper districts, the city of Guwahati is also facing the fury of the monsoon, prompting authorities to remain on high alert. The Meteorological department had already predicted heavy rain in and around the city for Sunday, and rainy weather is likely to continue for the next couple of days.

Within a 50-km radius of Guwahati airport, the Met department predicted 51 mm, 70 mm, 71 mm, 31 mm and 62 mm in the next three to four days respectively. Following an alarming rise in the Brahmaputra water level, authorities have closed down the sluice gates in Bharalumukh to stop the flow of extra water. 

Meanwhile, the Met department has forecast rain and thundershowers at most places in the state and has warned of heavy to very heavy rain in isolated places until August 27. In its weather bulletin, it has also predicted a change in the wet weather condition of the state between August 27 and 31.

The bulletin said heavy rainfall would continue in the neighbouring states of Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram and Tripura till August 26. 

The Borjhar-based Regional Meteorology Centre warned in its weather bulletin on Monday that heavy to very heavy rain would occur at isolated places over Arunachal Pradesh, Assam and Meghalaya during the next 48 hours, with extremely heavy rainfall at isolated places over the East Khasi Hills during the next 24 hours.