Floods caused by pre-monsoon rains have killed at least 18 in India’s northeastern Assam state and displaced more than 800,000 from their homes, government data showed on Saturday (May 21).
The swollen rivers have wreaked havoc, submerging houses, a fairground, and destroying crops in 31 districts of the state.
“The situation is very dangerous. As you can see, water has entered (our homes). Most of the people have moved away,” said a local resident, Bijoy Bordoloi.
Personnel from disaster response forces have been roped in to ferry people to safer areas and provide them with relief material, including food and medicine, with over 250 families in Hojai district temporarily resettled in makeshift tents beside railway tracks.
(Reuters)