Continuous overnight rain has wreaked havoc across North Bengal, leaving 14 people dead in landslides at Darjeeling’s Mirik and Sukhia Pokhari. Officials warned that the toll may rise as rescue operations by the Darjeeling district police are still underway.
The disaster also caused the collapse of the Dudia Iron Bridge, a vital link connecting the district towns and popular tourist destinations of Mirik and Kurseong. Additionally, another landslide was reported in Hussain Khola along National Highway 110 near Kurseong, further disrupting connectivity in the region.
The India Meteorological Department (IMD) had issued a red alert for Darjeeling, Kalimpong, Cooch Behar, Jalpaiguri, and Alipurduar, forecasting extremely heavy rainfall in these districts until Sunday morning.
The IMD attributed the severe weather to a well-marked low-pressure area, stating, “The well-marked low-pressure over west Jharkhand and adjoining areas of south Bihar, southeast Uttar Pradesh and north Chhattisgarh is likely to move north-northeastwards towards Bihar, and weaken gradually into a low-pressure area by Saturday evening.” The weather body predicted that heavy to very heavy rainfall would persist in sub-Himalayan West Bengal, including Darjeeling’s neighbouring district of Alipurduar in North Bengal, until Monday morning.
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The IMD’s bulletin further noted that light to moderate rainfall is expected at most places in these districts until Monday morning, with heavy rainfall forecast in Murshidabad, Birbhum, and Nadia districts in south Bengal during the same period. In the past 24 hours until 8:30 am on Saturday, light to moderate rainfall was recorded at several locations across West Bengal, with Bankura registering the highest rainfall at 65.8 mm, according to the Met office.
The combination of landslides, infrastructure damage, and ongoing heavy rainfall has heightened concerns in the region, prompting authorities to monitor the situation closely as the red alert underscores the severity of the weather conditions affecting West Bengal’s sub-Himalayan districts.
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