KATHMANDU, July 19: The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority (NDRRMA) has directed District Security Committees in 23 districts to suspend nighttime vehicle movement due to the risk of heavy to extremely heavy rainfall.
The authority said Saturday's meeting of the Monsoon Response Command Post decided that vehicle movement could be halted at any time in the identified districts, depending on weather conditions. It also called for heightened alertness in other districts across the country.
According to the latest bulletin issued by the Department of Hydrology and Meteorology, isolated places in the hilly and Tarai regions of Koshi, Gandaki, Lumbini and Sudurpashchim provinces are likely to receive extremely heavy rainfall today.
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Heavy to very heavy rainfall is also forecast at a few places in the country's hilly and mountainous regions, the Tarai areas of Koshi, Bagmati, Lumbini and Sudurpashchim provinces, and isolated parts of the Tarai in Madhesh, Bagmati and Gandaki provinces.
The authority has identified Panchthar, Ilam, Jhapa, Sankhuwasabha, Tehrathum, Bhojpur, Khotang, Dhankuta, Sindhuli, Lalitpur, Kavrepalanchok, Sindhupalchok, Nuwakot, Chitwan, Dhading, Gorkha, Lamjung, Kaski, Tanahun, Parbat, Baglung, Myagdi and Syangja as districts that could require emergency response measures. District Security Committees and local governments in these districts have been instructed to remain on high alert.
The meeting warned that heavy rainfall could trigger flash floods, landslides, riverbank erosion, debris flows, and urban and Tarai flooding. It urged all three security agencies, local governments, volunteers and other concerned agencies to remain ready for emergency response.
The Department of Roads and other relevant agencies have been instructed to keep bulldozers, excavators, loaders and other heavy equipment on standby along vulnerable highways and roads.
Based on early warning alerts, District Security Committees, local governments, security agencies and volunteers have also been asked to relocate people living in high risk areas to safer locations before disasters occur, if necessary.
The meeting also decided to mobilize development partners, civil society, the media, the private sector and the public for disaster preparedness and response as needed, while ensuring emergency warehouses remain fully stocked and ready for immediate deployment.
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