Storms At least 59 dead in floods in Nepal

At least 59 people have died in floods and landslides in Nepal. At least 36 other people were injured, according to police reports on Saturday. Emergency services were searching for 44 missing persons.

Rivers overflowed their banks in the vicinity of the capital Kathmandu and houses were flooded. According to civil protection, 3,000 security forces were deployed, some with helicopters and motorboats.

Residents waited on rooftops or waded through the water to get to safety. Several highways were blocked by landslides and hundreds of travelers were stranded. All domestic flights scheduled to depart from Kathmandu were canceled.

In South Asia, flooding is common during the rainy season from June to September, when 70 to 80 percent of the annual rainfall occurs. According to experts, climate change is causing more frequent and more severe flooding.

SDA