Kathmandu, July 12

Torrential rain in the last 24 hours has created havoc across the country, killing at least 17 people, turning roads into rivers and disrupting movement of vehicles.

Simara recorded the heaviest rainfall of 311.9 mm in the 24-hour period till 5.45pm today, followed by Janakpur (245.2 mm) and Dharan (155.8 mm). Kathmandu valley witnessed 115.2 mm of rain, according to the Meteorological Forecasting Division.

The downpour triggered a number of unpleasant incidents across the country, killing at least 17 and injuring seven, the Ministry of Home Affairs said. At least seven people are missing in rain-induced incidents.

The rains caused the Bagmati, Bishnumati, Hanumante and Balkhu rivers in Kathmandu valley to swell, eroding embankments, swamping places in the vicinity and crumpling infrastructure, like walls.

“The monsoon is likely to be active across the country for the next two to three days as there is low atmospheric pressure in eastern and central regions,” said Binod Parajuli, hydrologist at the Meteorological Forecasting Division’s Flood Forecasting Section.

The incessant rainfall, which started on Thursday evening, has already raised water level to as high as four feet above the ground in some places of Kathmandu, causing water to seep into residential buildings in Kalanki and Kuleshwor areas. Torrents of water poured into Kuleshwor Apartment Society, Metro Apartments and Oriental Colony Phase II, turning ground floors into ponds.

Nepali Army used an inflatable boat in Kuleshwor to rescue people. At least 50 people were also rescued by police from Khasi Bazaar of Kalanki.

The situation was the same in Bhaktapur, where the swollen Hanumante River submerged areas such as Ram Mandir, Barahisthan, Madhyapur Thimi, Radhe Radhe, Sankhadhar Chowk, Suryabinayak, Balkot and Chardobato.

Possibilities of other areas in the valley getting inundated are also high as water level in the Dhobikhola, Bagmati, Bishnumati and Nakkhu rivers is continuously rising, with the level in Khokana segment of Bagmati river crossing the ‘warning mark’, according to the Department of Hydrology and Meteorology. The department has also warned of landslides in hilly parts in the coming days, storm in some parts of the country and flash floods in provinces 1 and 2 and in the Chure region of Province 3.

Nationwide toll

• Three members of a family — Sharmila Yadav, 35, her son Kundan, 10, and sister-in-law Nitudevi, 30, who was pregnant — were killed on the spot in Mulpani of Kathmandu after a concrete wall collapsed and buried the hut they were living in. They hailed form Bara district
• One person was swept away by a swollen river in Kathmandu and another was injured after a wall in Singha Durbar collapsed
• A 60-year-old woman Goma Dangal and her granddaughter Suhabi, 7, were killed when a landslide buried their two-storey thatched house at Chunatal of Banepa Municipality, Kavre, on Thursday night. Goma’s daughter-in-law Sushila, 30, and her three-month-old daughter Anushka Dangal were injured in the incident
• Jagat Bahadur Rai, 66, was buried alive after the wall of his house collapsed in Bashikhora of Ram Prasad Rai, in Bhojpur; Janak BK, 14, was killed on the spot when landslide buried the toilet he was in at Lekharka of Temkemaiyung Rural Municipality of Bhojpur, on Friday
• Nikhil Patel, 10 was swept away by Singyahi khola in Parsagadhi Municipality of Parsa while he was trying to collect firewood brought by the stream
• Sanchana Balami, was swept away by Mahabhir khola. She was rescued but succumbed to her injuries while undergoing treatment at a hospital in Thaha Municipality, Makawanpur, on Friday
• Padam Kumari Sunuwar, 70, was killed while feeding livestock when the cowshed caved-in at Rampur’s Daijo of Ramechhap Municipality-5, Ramechhap, on Friday. Her daughter Ashali Sunuwar, 45, was injured in the incident
• Hem Kumar Sunuwar, 45, was killed when landslide buried the cowshed he was in at Fikkal Rural Municipality in Sindhuli on Friday
• Asmita Tamang, 8, was killed after landslide buried her house at Darigaun of Gajuri Rural Municipality in Dhading, on Friday. Her brother Jayaram Tamang, 12, was injured in the incident
• In Mahottari, Hamid Miya, 70, of Badiya in Balawa Municipality was swept away by a local stream while he was trying to cross the stream on

  his way home after collecting grass

• Bishnu Rai’s wife Rekha and their two sons — Roman, 3, and seven-month-old Rojan — were killed when landslide buried their home at Baplukha Baghpanchyang of Khotehang Rural Municipality, in Khotang, on Friday. Bishnu was rescued and rushed to hospital for primary treatment
• Diyan Rai, 10, was swept away by a local stream from Miklajung Rural Municipality, in Panchthar, on Friday morning and has been missing
• An unidentified person went missing after he was washed away by swollen Geuriya khola at Kanepokhari Rural Municipality, in Morang, on Friday