No fewer than 40 people have been confirmed dead following a glacial lake burst that triggered a torrential flash flood in India, Africa Today News, New York has learnt.
Violent torrents stuck the remote state of Sikkim earlier in the week after the sudden bursting of a high-altitude glacial lake in neighbouring Nepal.
Climate scientists warn that similar disasters will become an increasing danger across the Himalayas as global temperatures rise and ice melts.
Downstream search-and-rescue teams recovered more bodies overnight as the waters cut a swathe through the countryside towards the Bay of Bengal.
‘Nineteen bodies have been recovered’ in Sikkim state, V.B. Pathak, its top civil servant, told reporters.
Shama Parveen, a district magistrate in neighbouring West Bengal, said that an additional 21 bodies had been recovered in her state over the past three days.
Nearly 8,000 others were taking shelter at makeshift relief camps set up at schools, government offices and guesthouses, according to a state government bulletin.
“There may be a window of opportunity for evacuation of stranded tourists by helicopters” with weather conditions improving on Friday, the statement added.
Africa Today News, New York had earlier reported that no fewer than 10 persons were confirmed dead, while 82 were missing.
In another report, heavy rains overnight in the northeastern United States left parts of New York badly flooded on Saturday morning, partially paralyzing subways and airports in America’s financial hub.
In a number of social media posts which was sighted by Africa Today News, New York, travellers were shown wading through water that was well beyond the tops of their shoes, prompting LaGuardia Airport to close one of its terminals.
People were encouraged not to go outside by Mayor Eric Adams since the streets were shut and the tube stations were inundated.
“If you are home, stay home. If you are at work or school, shelter in place for now, some of our subways are flooded and it’s extremely difficult to move around the city,” he said.
Images from around New York showed cars half-submerged and traffic snarled, with some major roads completely blocked.