GUWAHATI
The second wave of floods in Assam claimed the lives of eight people — the most in a 24-hour phase — on Wednesday, taking the death toll since May to 46.
The first wave of floods in May was not as devastating as the second that started on June 16. Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, touring the flood-hit areas, attributed the scale of devastation to geographical factors beyond the control of the State.
Officials of the Assam State Disaster Management Authority (ASDMA) said eight people, including a woman in Sonitpur district and a child in Darrang district, drowned during the past 24 hours while three others were reported missing.
“So far, 46 people are confirmed dead in the two waves of flood since the last week of May,” an ASDMA spokesperson said.
Data provided by ASDMA said 16.25 lakh people have been affected across 29 flood-hit districts with 25,744 people shifted to 181 relief camps.
In Kaziranga National Park and Tiger Reserve, nine of the 233 submerged anti-poaching camps had to be vacated while 179 others were flooded to a “tolerable” level. The park authorities rescued 65 animals while 11 died, most of them hog deer.
Earlier, the Chief Minister said heavy rainfall in Arunachal Pradesh, Bhutan, and China led to the recent floods in Assam. “Otherwise, the suffering of the people came down considerably due to several flood control measures initiated over the years,” he claimed.
