Floods in Kentucky leave at least 28 dead

Kentucky is a state of the United States. It has the Ohio River in the north and the Appalachian Mountains in the east. Heavy rains in the region have devastated the eastern parts of Kentucky and floods have taken a heavy toll of lives. The authorities confirmed loss of lives of at least 28 people. The figure could increase as more rains threaten the region. Andy Beshear, Governor of Kentucky confirmed death of at least four children. He added that more bodies have been recovered but details have yet to come out. At least 28 dead in devastating Kentucky flooding, with more expected, governor says.

The Governor also mentioned about "widespread damage" that displaced thousands of people. There are reports of power outages for thousands apart from washed out roads that have affected travel. Many homes are destroyed and schools are flooded. He would visit some of the regions to see for himself the impact of the floods. There are more rains forecast and search and rescue teams have been deployed to locate those who are reported to be missing. So far, aircraft and boats have rescued more than 600 people. Incidentally, the destruction in Kentucky is the latest extreme flooding event to take place in the U.S. in less than a week. Las Vegas witnessed heavy downpours coupled with flash floods. These led to rise in water levels on the road and parking garages in busy parts of city. It seems the mega drought in the region has dried up the soil. As a result, the region became so dry that it could not absorb the heavy rains. That factor probably contributed to the flooding. Kentucky is trying to establish shelters. Last week, President Joe Biden has already approved a disaster declaration.

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Heavy rains disrupt the life of financial capital Mumbai

It has happened again - heavy rains have disrupted life in Mumbai, the financial capital of India and resulted in waterlogging in low-lying areas apart from throwing out of gear the local train services which is the lifeline of this metropolis. Many long distance have been cancelled.
This has been reported in zeenews.india.com dated 22 July 2015.

Two deaths have been reported due to a wall collapse at Govandi due to the incessant rains and waterlogging have also occurred in low-lying areas like Kurla, Chembur, Tilak Nagar, Andheri, Parel and Lower Parel apart from neighboring areas of Thane, Navi Mumbai and Raigad.
This waterlogging during the monsoons is a perennial problem and whichever political party is in power promises to remove this menace but, even though enormous sums of money are allotted and spent on this account, the problem remains. Many dreams have been woven to make this city like Shanghai but, nothing appears to have been done. Shanghai rhymes with Mumbai and, there the similarity ends.
(Image courtesy wikimediacommons.org)

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No respite for Gaza – UN declares emergency after sudden floods

Over 400,000 Palestinians are trying to come to terms after having been displaced from their homes due to the 50-day summer conflict with Israel that came to an end in August. However, their lives are in turmoil again because of the sudden floods following two days of heavy rains – it has forced the UN to declare a state of emergency in Gaza Strip.
There are no reports of any casualty but hundreds of people have been evacuated and 63 schools are closed for the day in Gaza City.
It may be recalled that in October, international donors had pledged $5.4bn for rebuilding Gaza. But the heavy rains struck the small territory at a difficult time – even now, thousands of Gazan families still live in communal shelters or the ruins of their own homes after the conflict.
Moreover, in the Shejaiya neighborhood, where air strikes during the recent conflict had damaged many of the buildings, the residents are already in the grip of a cold and severe winter without any electricity or water.
The conflict in Gaza ended in August based on an Egyptian-brokered ceasefire – it was called between Israel and the Palestinians and under the agreement Israel agreed to ease its eight-year blockade of Gaza, while Egypt would re-open its border crossing and the militant groups and Israel would cease hostilities.
As per UN reports, the seven-week Gaza conflict that finally ended in a truce on 26 August had resulted in death of over 2,100 Palestinians, most of them civilians. The casualties also included 67 Israeli soldiers and six civilians in Israel.