India Flash Flood Kills At Least A Dozen—Over 100 Missing

Topline

Heavy rains triggered flash floods in northeastern India Wednesday that have killed at least 14 people and left more than 100 missing as vehicles were submerged, mudslides were triggered and waters rushed through the streets, the latest high-profile flood across the globe in a matter of weeks.

A vehicle that got washed away lies beneath a tree after flash floods triggered by a sudden heavy … [+] rainfall swamped the Rangpo town in Sikkim, India, Thursday, Oct.5. 2023.

Associated Press

Key Facts

The rains led to the collapse of the Chungthang Dam and overflowing of the Teesta River, Indian authorities said, affecting more than 22,000 people in the districts of Mangan, Namchi, Gangtok and Pakyong.

Among the missing are almost two dozen soldiers, the Associated Press reported, who were swamped when army camps and cars were submerged in mud brought by floodwaters.

Nearly 3,000 tourists and 700 drivers have been stranded and are being evacuated by helicopter, schools in all four districts have been ordered closed through the end of the week and parts of the highway that links the state capital of Sikkim to the rest of the country has washed away.

Indian Prime Minister Narenda Modi said on X he is praying “for the safety and well-being of all those affected” by the “unfortunate natural calamity.”

Gallery: India’s Flash Flooding Kills 14 As Dam Breaks

9 images

Big Number

270. That’s how many houses have been damaged or destroyed, along with 11 bridges that have been washed away.

Tangent

The start of September brought eight massive floods to four continents in 11 days. At least 11,300 people died in eastern Libya in a “disaster of epic proportions” after a storm in the Mediterranean led to widespread flooding that washed away entire neighborhoods in a blink. A tropical cyclone battered southern Brazil—floods killed nearly 40 people—and seven people were killed as heavy rains triggered flash floods in northwest Turkey. Spain, southern China, Hong Kong and the southwestern U.S. were also hit, leading climate scientists to blame global warming for intensifying the planet’s water cycle. Warming oceans cause more extreme weather events, scientists say, with human-caused global warming at the center of the problem.

Crucial Quote

“Globally, climate change has made these extreme weather events more frequent and intense, making it even harder for communities to cope and rebuild, especially in conflict-affected regions,” Ciaran Donnelly of the International Rescue Committee told CNN.

Key Background

The disaster in India follows July flooding that killed at least 100 people in the north and flash floods and landslides killed 50 people in Himachal Pradesh at the base of the Himalayas in August. Almost 200 people died in flash floods in February of 2021. Advocates have long warned against building dams in the mountainous region and accused developers of “willfully” ignoring the climate risks involved. The International Center for Integrated Mountain Development said Himalayan glaciers could lose as much as 80% of their volume due to global warming, sending the once-frozen waters into populated areas and exacerbating an already dramatic monsoon season. India Climate Dialogue, a website run by the Himalayan advocacy group The Third Pole, said a “rush to make short-term profits by building hydroelectric dams” can be blamed for a massive influx of dams that could cause long-term problems. Author Sunil S. Amrith said in the New York Times in 2018 that 400 dams were under construction or planned for the coming decades, and India Climate Dialogue says the mass ice melt could make the infrastructure susceptible to cracking, which can lead to landslides, unstable slopes and earthquakes.

India Flash Flood Kills At Least A Dozen—Over 100 Missing—In Latest Global Incident (Photos)