The UN is reporting that at least 900 people have been killed by ongoing monsoonal flooding and landslides in India, Bangladesh and Nepal and it is now estimated 43 million people have been affected across the region.
While some level of flooding occurs annually in the monsoon season, Oxfam staff in Bangladesh are reporting that two-thirds of the country is under water and in some areas the flooding is the worst since 1988.
In Nepal, one region received a month’s worth of rain in just two days and the flooding it caused later spread downstream into India and Bangladesh, worsening the situation there.
Oxfam New Zealand’s Humanitarian Manager Clive Phillips said the size of the disaster was devastating.
“Especially looking at this from a New Zealand perspective, the number of people killed and affected by the ongoing flooding is hard to comprehend,” Phillips said.
“Almost ten times New Zealand’s entire population has been affected by this disaster across South Asia.
“More support is needed to help organisations like Oxfam assist the millions of people in need across India, Bangladesh and Nepal.”
Oxfam is providing over 186,000 flood-hit people with clean drinking water, food supplies, emergency shelter, hygiene kits, and other essentials. As the crisis continues, we will work to support more people and help them recover.
Donations to support Oxfam’s emergency responses around the world can be made at oxfam.org.nz/drf or by calling 0800 600 700.
