Monsoon death toll tops 700

2008-08-22 13:06

Lucknow - More than 700 people have died in flooding and storms across India since the monsoon hit in June, officials said on Friday after reporting 27 more dead in Uttar Pradesh.

India's most populated state has accounted for 660 deaths, relief commissioner GK Tandon said in the local capital Lucknow.

The majority of victims died when their homes collapsed, while lightning claimed 75 lives in the northern state, he said.

"The monsoon fury has affected 1.29 million people. A total of 3 173 villages are affected while 674 villages have been totally marooned," Tandon said.

Northern Punjab saw 14 more deaths in August, with five of the state's 19 districts under water after incessant rain, officials said.

Another 40 people died in torrential downpours in southern India during the month, Press Trust of India (PTI) said.

Heavy rains had weakened levees and dam walls triggering more worries for flood control officials.

A 500-yard breach opened in Erapul Thodandh dam, western Uttar Pradesh, earlier this week, marooning two villages, officials said.

"Work is going on to repair the breach and things are under control," Tandon said, adding that the state administration was running 268 relief camps for the homeless.

Further downstream in eastern Bihar state, 700 000 people have been displaced by flood waters carried down the Himalayas from neighbouring Nepal, government officers told PTI.

Hundreds of people die every year in India and millions are displaced during the June-September monsoon.

- AFP