More than three dozen houses have been inundated as swollen Doda River gushed into human settlements in Laljhadi Rural Municipality-3 of Kanchanpur district in the wee hours of Friday. Locals fled to safety after the flood triggered by the torrential rain in the Chure range inundated the houses in Balmi, Dunga among several villages.
Laljhadi-3 ward chair Tikaram Chaudhary said the residents along with the domestic animals were shifted to safe places after the local river gushed into the settlements at around 2:00 am. According to him, more than 40 houses have been inundated in Balmi and Dunga. Moreover, food grains stored in those houses have been damaged and some houses are at the risk of collapse.
Ward chair Chaudhary said that details of loss incurred in the catastrophe are awaited. No casualties have been reported in the natural disasters as locals became aware of the flood before it could take its toll on them.
Local Jhakku Prasad Chaudhary said the flood destroyed the sugarcane farm lying on more than 10 bighas of land. "More than two dozen sugarcane farmers have suffered huge loss due to the flood triggered by torrential rain in Chure range," Jhakku said and added that other crops including paddy have also been damaged.
It has been learnt that the flood also swept away the under-construction bridge over the swollen river, that connects Balmi and Nandagaun.
Meanwhile, the river has subsided and has started eroding the arable land, local Tularam Chaudhary said. Locals are living in fear as the incessant rain has continued, he said.
The flood has also wreaked havoc on embankment constructed to support the suspension bridge over Doda River, at Tilki in Shuklaphanta Municipality-12 in the district. The logs and other woods stored in the community forest in Shuklaphanta-8 were also swept away by the swollen river.
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