Assam floods claim 21 lives in 24 hours, death toll rises to 31
Guwahati, July 22
At least 21 people lost their lives in floods across Assam in the last 24 hours, taking the death toll to 31, according to the Assam State Disaster Management Authority.
According to the ASDMA flood report, 13 people died in Sivasagar district, five in Charaideo, two in Golaghat and one in Jorhat in the last 24 hours.
The flood situation in Assam remained grim, with over 5.64 lakh people affected across 16 districts, including Golaghat, Kamrup, Hojai, Dibrugarh, Biswanath, Dhemaji, Sonitpur, Udalguri, Nagaon, Charaideo, Kamrup (M), Jorhat, Tinsukia, Karbi Anglong, Lakhimpur and Sivasagar.
Floodwaters have submerged 24,210.35 hectares of crop area and affected 872 villages across 44 revenue circles.
Sivasagar is the worst-affected district, with over 3.59 lakh people affected, followed by Jorhat with 87,662, Charaideo with 72,646, Dibrugarh with 18,615 and Golaghat with 16,799.
More than 1.14 lakh people have taken shelter in 273 relief camps and relief distribution centres set up by district administrations in the flood-affected areas.
Meanwhile, the Indian Army, the Indian Air Force, the NDRF, the SDRF, the police, and the local administration are engaged in relief and rescue operations across the affected areas.
The National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) rescued five people from flood-affected Seleng Ghat near Seleng Tea Estate under Teok Revenue Circle in Assam's Jorhat district following an alert from the District Disaster Management Authority (DDMA) on July 19.
An NDRF team led by Inspector K.B. Nath, under the supervision of N.K. Tiwari, Deputy Commandant, 1st Battalion NDRF, was deployed to the affected area.
The search and rescue team rescued a young girl trapped on the roof of her submerged house, a man who was being swept away by strong currents and three women stranded amid the floodwaters.
An elderly woman was found in critical condition after suffering severe hypothermia due to prolonged exposure to cold floodwater. The rescue team evacuated all five victims, administered pre-hospital treatment, particularly to the elderly woman, and shifted them safely to a designated relief centre for further medical care and rehabilitation.
— ANI
Reader Comments
Every year same story, same floods, same suffering. Why can't our government build proper drainage and embankments? 31 lives lost is unacceptable. We need better infrastructure planning, not just relief camps after the damage is done. 🙏
As someone living in the US, I can't imagine the scale of this disaster. 5.64 lakh people affected and over 1.14 lakh in relief camps. The resilience of the Assamese people is inspiring. My thoughts are with the families who lost loved ones.
The story of that young girl rescued from the roof of her submerged house and the elderly woman with hypothermia shows how close these disasters bring us to the edge. Grateful to the NDRF team led by Inspector K.B. Nath and Deputy Commandant N.K. Tiwari for their bravery. True heroes. 💪
24,210 hectares of crop area submerged 😔 Our farmers are already suffering so much. The government must provide immediate compensation and support for rebuilding livelihoods. Also, why are we seeing this every year without proper mitigation? This needs to be a national priority.
Visited Assam last year and saw the Brahmaputra's fury firsthand. It's one thing to read about floods in news, another to see communities washed away. The coordination between Indian Army, Air Force, NDRF, and local admin seems impressive. But 31 deaths is still too many. Stay strong, Assam.
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