Torrential rainfall across catchment areas in Nepal has triggered an intense surge in the Gandak river, severely destabilising life across northern Bihar. West Champaran district has borne the heaviest brunt of this deluge, as overflowing waters penetrated deep into rural communities. Blocks including Nautan, Bairia, Yogapatti, and Bagaha 02 face critical flooding, with rapid currents drowning entire settlements under muddy floodwaters.
Submerged Homes And Swept Away Possessions
The swift inundation has completely swamped villages such as Mangalpur Kala, Bishambharpur, and Phuliakhad located within Nautan block, alongside several panchayats across Yogapatti and Bagaha 02. As homes filled with deep water, residents lost nearly all their personal belongings. Essential food grains, household furniture, clothing, cooking utensils, and crucial identity documents were either washed downstream or destroyed inside submerged houses.
Families Stranded On Boats And Open Roads
Devdatt Ram, a resident of Bishambharpur, explained that the violent waves of the Gandak obliterated his household possessions, compelling his entire family to seek refuge on a country boat. According to him, daily routines have ground to a halt, making even cooking meals or finding clean drinking water an overwhelming ordeal during the emergency.
Deadly Reptiles And Rising Canals At Embankments
Sarita Devi, a resident of Phuliakhad, described having to camp on raised roadways and embankments after water covered her home. She noted that staying inside makeshift tents beside drainage canals exposes families to venomous snakes and scorpions prowling the dry margins. Furthermore, continuous large-scale water releases from the Gandak Barrage in Valmikinagar keep canal levels dangerously high, continuously threatening to submerge the very embankments where displaced villagers have taken shelter.
