Patna: Floodwaters rampaged through 16 districts of Bihar on Tuesday, claiming six more lives and affecting over 63.60 lakh people, officials said.
The death toll from the deluge has gone up to 19, a state disaster management department bulletin said.
Nearly seven lakh more people fell victim to the flood fury in the last 24 hours, with rain-fed rivers originating in Nepal, inundating vast swathes.
Large parts of Saharsa and Madhepura districts, hitherto unaffected, were submerged. Of the six fresh deaths, four occurred in Muzaffarpur
district and two in Siwan.
Out of the total flood-related deaths, Darbhanga accounts for seven, while the rest was reported from Muzaffarpur (6), West Champaran (4) and Siwan (2), the bulletin said.
The 16 flood-hit districts are- Sitamarhi, Sheohar, Supaul, Kishanganj, Darbhanga, Muzaffarpur, Gopalganj, West Champaran, East Champaran, Khagaria, Saran, Samastipur, Siwan, Madhubani, Madhepura and Saharsa.
Altogether 20 teams of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and 13 of SDRF are involved in relief and rescue operations.
Over 4.40 lakh people have been evacuated to safety, the bulletin said.
Nearly 18,000 people are staying in 17 relief camps, while about 9.52 lakh people were being provided food at 1365 community kitchens.
Darbhanga perilously afloat
The flood in Bihar has broken the record of previous 16 years, as Bagmati river continues to swell, inundating wards 8, 9 and 23 of Darbhanga district.
Flood victims have complained that despite such a grievous situation, neither the state administration nor the Central government has sent any help.
Kesariya SH 74 inundated by Gandak river water
The water level of rivers flowing through East Champaran district has become normal. However, a dam on the river broke on July 24 flooding Kesariya.
The important state highway 74 running through Kesariya has also been waterlogged for 15 days halting traffic and causing inconvenience to travellers.
