Floods, landslides kill over 55 in Nepal, India

Torrential rain has battered Nepal, causing widespread flooding and landslides and raising the death toll from three days of severe weather to 49 people, according to officials.

The toll could go higher as three dozen people were reported missing. Another 17 were injured.

The heavy rain, which mainly hit the country’s southern plains, led to the evacuation of 5,000 people, a Home Ministry official said.

More than 30 people were reported dead on Saturday.

Army and police personnel continued search and rescue operations, with more than 34,000 houses submerged, the official added.

"The number of dead could increase as we are still compiling the final tally," Laxmi Pun, an aide to Home Minister Janardan Sharma, told Reuters.

The Red Cross estimated 100,000 people were affected by the disaster, with one official describing how the storm had cut off communication and electricity, adding to the challenges in rescuing people and distributing aid supplies such as food and water to displaced people.

Monsoon rains which start in June and continue through September are important for farm-dependent Nepal, but they also cause havoc each year.

At least six people have been killed and dozens more are missing after a massive landslide swept two buses off a hillside into a deep gorge in mountainous northern India, an official said Sunday.

The coaches had stopped for a tea break around midnight Saturday in Himachal Pradesh when tons of rock and mud swept away an entire stretch of highway roughly 200 km from the state capital Shimla.

Rescue teams reached the scene but struggled in the dark and steep terrain, with the army later joining the search.

Six bodies had been recovered so far but there were fears for many more still missing, said Sandeep Kadam, a senior official at the scene.

"The other bus has been swept away, 800 meters down the steep hillside. We are not sure how many people were in this bus," he told AFP.

The Press Trust of India reported 30 people were feared dead in the disaster, while other reports suggested an even higher toll.

Some houses and slum dwellings were also destroyed in the landslide, which followed days of heavy rain in the Himalayan region.

Landslides are common in India, especially during monsoon months when heavy rain loosens steep hillsides.

SS