As the waters from the monsoon floods that killed at least 192 people throughout the Himalayan nation receded, search and rescue workers in the capital of Nepal began going through the destroyed homes on Monday.
Experts claim that although deadly floods and landslides are frequent during South Asia’s monsoon season, which runs from June to September, they are becoming more frequent due to climate change.
After the most intense rains in over 20 years, entire neighbourhoods in Kathmandu were submerged, and landslides blocked roadways, momentarily cutting off the capital from the rest of Nepal. “We are concentrating on searching and saving lives, including those who have become lost on roads,” Home Ministry spokesperson Rishi Ram Tiwari informed AFP.
“192 people have been reported dead, and another 31 are missing,” the official said. At least 35 people were buried alive after a landslide ploughed into vehicles on a highway south of Kathmandu, Nepal Police spokesman Dan Bahadur Karki told AFP. Meanwhile, rescuers in knee-high rubber boots used shovels to clear muck from the worst-hit riverfront neighbourhoods around Kathmandu, many of which were illegal slums.
Unplanned urban sprawl surrounding the Bagmati River, which flows through the city, has exacerbated the calamity, according to the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development, a think tank with headquarters in Nepal.
The Nepalese army reported that over 4,000 people had been saved, with rafts, motorboats, and helicopters being utilised to evacuate stranded houses. Nearly two dozen key highway sections going into Kathmandu were being cleared of debris using bulldozers.
Vendors in Kathmandu said that the capital’s supply of fresh produce has been significantly reduced due to damage to intercity highways.
“All of it is stuck because the highways are blocked, even though the farmers have their produce ready,” Binay Shrestha, a worker at one of the city’s major produce markets, told AFP.
According to preliminary data from stations in 14 districts, Nepal’s weather bureau reported record-breaking rain in the 24 hours leading up to Saturday morning.
The most rain since 2002 was reported at a monitoring station at the airport in Kathmandu, with approximately 240 millimetres (9.4 inches) falling.
In an area with a population of almost two billion, the summer monsoon, which lasts from July to September, provides 70–80% of South Asia’s yearly rainfall and is essential to agricultural and food production.
However, monsoon rains also cause landslides and floods, which cause extensive mortality and destruction. Climate change, according to experts, has made them more frequent and intense. This year, rain-related calamities in Nepal have claimed the lives of over 300 individuals.
In Essence
The devastating floods in Nepal, which have claimed the lives of 192 people and left many others missing, are a stark reminder of the increasingly severe impact of climate change on vulnerable regions.
Monsoon floods are an annual occurrence in South Asia, but the intensity and frequency of such events have grown due to global warming.
Experts have long warned that climate change would exacerbate extreme weather events, and Nepal, with its mountainous terrain and fragile infrastructure, is particularly vulnerable to landslides and flooding during the monsoon season.
This disaster highlights several critical issues. First, the unplanned urban sprawl, particularly in areas like Kathmandu’s riverfronts, has exacerbated the flooding.
Poorly regulated construction in flood-prone areas, combined with inadequate infrastructure, has increased the vulnerability of populations living in informal settlements. These communities often have limited access to essential services, making rescue operations and disaster relief even more difficult.
The floods underscore the need for more robust urban planning and enforcement of zoning laws to prevent future disasters
