At least one person died and at least 25 others were missing in flash floods and landslides triggered by heavy rains that battered east Nepal, local media reported on Sunday.
Heavy rains washed away a hydroelectric project under construction on the Hewa River in Sankhuwasabha district in eastern Nepal where 16 workers have gone missing, a government official said.
“One body has been recovered while police are searching for the missing laborers,” the official added.
Nine people were also missing in flash floods and landslides in neighboring Taplejung and Panchthar districts, bordering India in the east, officials said.
A official at the Panchthar district said that overnight rains damaged two bridges on the Mechi highway, cutting off the road link to remote Taplejung district where four people were missing.
Officials said heavy rains prevented rescue workers from reaching the hilly Sidingwa village where at least 20 houses were at risk of being washed away.
Annual rains, which are crucial for crops, normally begin in midJune and continue through September in Nepal. Hundreds are killed or go missing in rains which spark floods inundating villages, crops and damaging infrastructure every year in mostly mountainous Nepal, nestled between China and India.
Source: Qatar News Agency