Nepal declares national holiday as floods, landslides kill 47

At least 47 people have died after heavy rains triggered landslides and flash floods in Nepal.

Authorities say six people in the same family were killed when a landslide crushed their home while they slept.

Another 35 people were killed in separate landslides in the Ilam district while three others were killed in lightning strikes.

Heavy rain was reported in the landlocked Asian country since Friday. Rivers in Kathmandu, the capital, swelled, swallowing settlements along the banks.

By Sunday, the death toll had risen leaving Nepal’s National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority frantic in a search for several other missing people.

“Rescue efforts for the missing persons are going on,” Shanti Mahat, spokesperson for the agency, said.

However, authorities noted that blocked roads have hampered rescue efforts.

The government had declared a national holiday as weather officials said the rains were likely to continue until Monday.

Landslides and flash floods are common in Nepal during the monsoon season, which normally starts in mid-June and continues through mid-September. Experts have blamed their increased frequency on climate change.

Annually, hundreds of people die from the disaster. Flooding and landslides last year around the same time killed 224 people and left 158 injured.

India, which surrounds Nepal on three sides, has offered to help.