The UN is reporting that at least 900 people have been killed by ongoing monsoonal flooding and landslides in India, Bangladesh and Nepal and its estimated 41 million people have been affected across a huge area.
While some level of flooding occurs annually in the monsoon season, Oxfam staff in Bangladesh reported that two-thirds of the country was under water in late August and in some areas the flooding was 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 Australia’s Humanitarian Manager Meg Quartermaine said the size of the disaster was staggering.
“Especially looking at this from an Australian perspective, the number of people killed and affected by the ongoing flooding is hard to comprehend,” Ms Quartermaine said.
“Almost double Australia’s 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 supporting government responses in all three countries, for example by providing clean drinking water, hygiene kits and other essential supplies that help stop the spread of water-borne diseases.
Donations to support Oxfam’s emergency responses in India, Nepal, Bangladesh and around the world can be made online at oxfam.org.au/icf or by calling 1800 034 034.
For interviews, please contact Dylan Quinnell on 0450 668 350 or dylanq@oxfam.org.au
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