At least 18 dead, millions stranded as floods ravage India, Bangladesh

Both India and Bangladesh have asked their militaries for help as more flooding looms with rains expected to continue over the weekend.

At least 18 people have died as massive floods ravaged northeastern India and Bangladesh, leaving millions of homes underwater and severing transport links, authorities said Saturday.

In India’s Assam state, at least nine people were killed in the floods and 2 million saw their homes submerged, according to the state disaster management agency.

Lightning in parts of neighboring Bangladesh meanwhile killed nine people on Friday.

Both countries have asked their militaries for help as more flooding looms with rains expected to continue over the weekend.

The Brahmaputra, one of Asia’s largest rivers, breached its mud embankments, inundating 3,000 villages and croplands in 28 of Assam’s 33 districts.

“We expect moderate to heavy rainfall in several parts of Assam till Sunday. The volume of rainfall has been unprecedented,” said Sanjay O’Neil, an official at the meteorological station in Gauhati, Assam’s capital.

Several train services were canceled in India amid the incessant downpour over the past five days. In southern Assam’s Haflong town, the railway station was underwater and flooded rivers deposited mud and silt along the rail tracks.

India’s army has been mobilized to assist disaster response agencies in rescuing stranded people and providing food and other essentials. Soldiers used speedboats and inflatable rafts to navigate through submerged areas.