16 million affected by Asian floods

KATHMANDU: More than 16 million people have been affected by floods in south Asia with heavy rains and damaged roads hampering relief efforts amid severe food shortages and a growing risk of waterborne diseases.

Heavy monsoon rains in Nepal, Bangladesh and India have killed more than 343 people, officials and aid workers said.

“This is fast becoming one of the most serious humanitarian crises this region has seen in many years,” said Martin Faller, deputy regional director for Asia Pacific at the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies.

“Millions of people face severe food shortages and disease. We fear (it) will get worse in the days and weeks ahead.”

More than a third of Bangladesh and Nepal have been flooded, Faller said.

In Nepal, 27 of 75 districts were either submerged or hit by landslides, leaving villages and communities stranded without food, water and electricity. The Home Ministry said 131 people had been killed and 30 were missing.

In Bangladesh, flood levels have reached record highs. At least 56 people have been killed and about 4 million are affected, the Red Crescent said.

In India, more than 11 million people have been affected in four states across the north and east, with at least 156 killed. – Reuters