Over 125 people killed in floods, landslides in Nepal
Kathmandu (PTI): The death toll from rain-triggered floodings and landslides across Nepal climbed to 125 on Sunday, police said.
Large swathes of eastern and central Nepal have been inundated since Friday, with flash floods reported in parts of the country.
According to the Armed Police Force sources, 64 people are missing in floods, landslides and inundation, while 61 people have been injured.
The Kathmandu Valley reported the highest number of deaths.
At least 322 houses and 16 bridges were damaged. The security personnel have rescued nearly 3,626 people, the Armed Police Force sources said.
The sources added that rescue operations were still underway.
Eyewitnesses said they had never seen such a devastating flood and inundation in the Kathmandu Valley in 40-45 years.
The death toll has reached 125, the Armed Police Force said in a statement.
At least 19 people were killed on Saturday when a bus was buried in a landslide in Dhading district bordering Kathmandu. Five people died when a house collapsed under a landslide in the city of Bhaktapur.
Six football players were also killed in a landslide at a training centre operated by the All Nepal Football Association in Makwanpur. Others have been swept up in the floodwaters.
Despite the forecast for rain to continue until Tuesday, there were signs of some easing on Sunday.
“I’ve never before seen flooding on this scale in Kathmandu,” said Arun Bhakta Shrestha, Climate and Environmental expert at the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD).
Kathmandu's main river, the Bagmati, was flowing above danger levels after incessant rain lashed much of eastern and central Nepal on Friday and Saturday, a report published by ICIMOD said.
A low-pressure system in the Bay of Bengal and the more northerly than usual position of the monsoon trough was the reason behind Saturday's exceptionally intense rain, it said.
Scientists say that while climate change is changing the amount and timing of rainfall across Asia, a key reason for the rise in the impact of floods is the built environment, including unplanned construction, especially on floodplains, which leaves insufficient areas for water retention and drainage.
The floods and landslides have thrown life out of gear in many parts of the country, with many highways and road stretches disrupted, hundreds of houses and bridges buried or swept away, and hundreds of families displaced.
Thousands of passengers have been stranded in various places due to road disruption.
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South African police arrest suspect in mass shooting that killed 12, including 3 children
Johannesburg (AP): A 32-year-old suspect has been arrested in connection with a mass shooting which claimed the lives of 12 people including three children at an unlicensed pub earlier this month, South African police said on Monday.
The man is suspected of being one of the three people who opened fire on patrons in a pub at Saulsville township, west of South Africa's capital Pretoria, killing 12 people including three children aged 3, 12 and 16.
At least 13 people were also injured during the attack, whose motive remains unknown.
According to the police, the suspect was arrested on Sunday while traveling to Botlokwa in Limpopo province, more than 340 km from where the mass shooting took place on Dec 6.
An unlicensed firearm believed to have been used during the attack was recovered from the suspect's vehicle.
“The 32-year-old suspect was intercepted by Limpopo Tracking Team on the R101 Road in Westenburg precinct. During the arrest, the team recovered an unlicensed firearm, a hand gun, believed to have been used in the commission of the multiple murders. The firearm will be taken to the Forensic Science Laboratory for ballistic analysis,” police said in statement.
The suspect was arrested on the same day that another mass shooting at a pub took place in the Bekkersdal township, west of Johannesburg, in which nine people were killed and 10 wounded when unknown gunmen opened fire on patrons.
Police have since launched a search for the suspects.
South Africa has one of the highest homicide rates in the world and recorded more than 26,000 homicides in 2024 — an average of more than 70 a day. Firearms are by far the leading cause of death in homicides.
The country of 62 million people has relatively strict gun ownership laws, but many killings are committed with illegal guns, according to authorities.
According to police, mass shootings at unlicensed bars are becoming a serious problem. Police shut down more than 11,000 illegal taverns between April and September this year and arrested more than 18,000 people for involvement in illegal liquor sales.
