North Bengal braces for more rain as Met dept sounds red, yellow alerts

Kolkata, Oct 5 (PTI) The meteorological department on Sunday issued a red alert for parts of Darjeeling, Coochbehar and Alipurduar districts, warning of heavy to extremely heavy rainfall over the next 24 hours, and yellow alert for most places in north Bengal covering other parts of Darjeeling, besides Kalimpong and Dooars region.

At least 20 people, including several children, were killed and scores injured as relentless rain unleashed massive landslides across the Mirik and Darjeeling hills in West Bengal, sweeping away homes, severing road links, isolating villages, and leaving hundreds of tourists stranded.

"Light to moderate rain or thundershowers are very likely to occur at most places over all the districts in north Bengal (yellow alert) with heavy to very heavy rain (7-20 cm) at a few places and extremely heavy rain (20 cm) at one or two places over Coochbehar, Alipurduar and Darjeeling districts (red alert)", a weather official said.

In Met parlance, yellow alert refers to severe weather with potential for widespread damage, while red alert warns of immediate risk of widespread disruption and threats to life.

In a post on X, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said that on Saturday night, there was sudden rainfall exceeding 300 mm in 12 hours in north Bengal, causing severe flooding and landslides across at least seven locations.

She compared the situation to the intense flooding that Kolkata experienced last month during the festive season.

"There has been continuous, heavy rain for 12 hours. Landslides have occurred at seven locations. I am keeping a close watch and hope to reach by around 3 pm on Monday," she said. Banerjee is scheduled to visit north Bengal on October 6 to assess the situation.

Meanwhile, thousands of tourists have been stranded across the region due to the landslides and road blockages. The CM assured them that the state government would make arrangements to bring them back safely and appealed to tourists not to panic or rush to leave. PTI SUS MNB