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“Natural disasters are a wake-up call to humanity,” - Lora A.R
The Indian subcontinent is known for its tropical weather, making it prone to rain and flooding. It is also home to the wettest place on Earth, Mawsymran, which receives approximately 467 inches of rain per year. Since the last 2 years, India has been facing floods.
Although 12 Indian states were affected by heavy rains, Kerala, Assam, and Bihar were the worst hit. In total, 10 million people were affected by the rains including 2.4 million children. 3.5 million were affected in Assam. 67,000 people have lost their lives, and 2 million people are being hosted in relief camps. 10,000 houses were destroyed and damaged and 127,647 ha of cropland were submerged. These floods are accompanied by landslides. One landslide in Kerala killed 100 people. Many houses were destroyed and unharvested crops were washed away.
Another side effect of these floods is water-logging, or the saturation of water in soil. The streets of Mumbai were filled with water. Places like Oval Maidan, Marine Drive, and Girgaum Chowpatty were completely submerged underwater. Water even made its way inside heritage sites. Water logging of this scale has never taken place in Mumbai before. Many residents did not expect the floods to have so much strength compared to previous years.
Floods cause a variety of problems such as water and food scarcity, lack of housing and shelter, and the threat of water-borne diseases like cholera and typhoid. With a global pandemic out there, the situation only gets worse. The threat of an outbreak looms over the heads of the citizens like a sword. An outbreak in such conditions can be disastrous and the disease may spread like wildfire when residents pile into tightly-packed shelters for days on end.
Though the situation is getting better, the floods are far from over. My prayers and wishes are with the people of India and I hope that normalcy is soon restored. Below are sites you may choose to visit to donate to India’s flood relief.
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