Monsoon Fury Batters Arunachal Pradesh and Assam as Floods and Landslides Leave Trail of Destruction

The situation remains critical in Arunachal Pradesh, where 12 districts have reported extensive damage. Several villages have been completely cut off after key roads were washed away or buried under landslides, severely disrupting transportation and delaying relief efforts.

A major rescue operation was carried out in Lower Dibang Valley district, where an Indian Air Force helicopter evacuated four people stranded on an island in the swollen Sisiri River at Dambuk. Continuous rainfall has also inflicted severe damage on the Roing-Anini road, with multiple stretches and bridges washed away by flash floods, further isolating remote areas.

In Anjaw district, an excavator operator is feared dead after a massive boulder crashed onto the machine during highway construction work near Sarti village on Sunday night. Rescue teams continue search operations at the site as difficult weather conditions hamper efforts.

East Siang district has witnessed extensive disruption after several major road stretches became impassable due to landslides and flood damage. The closures have isolated the villages of Yagrung, Tekang and Sibut from the district headquarters at Pasighat, creating significant challenges for residents and emergency responders.

A cloudburst in the Ruksin subdivision triggered flash floods in Ledum and Korang villages, damaging several houses, submerging many others and destroying critical infrastructure. The Rema Bridge collapsed completely, while the Bokrang Bridge sustained significant structural damage. Personnel from the State Disaster Response Force, the district administration and local volunteers rescued around 40 residents from the affected areas and shifted them to safer locations.

Authorities stated that restoration work is progressing, but only a limited number of damaged roads have been reopened. Several key routes across East Siang district remain unsafe for vehicular movement, restricting access to affected communities.

In Lower Siang district, a massive landslide near Siji blocked the flow of the Siji River, causing water to accumulate upstream and raising concerns over the possibility of additional flooding. During the incident, a motorcyclist narrowly escaped after being swept downhill along with the motorcycle.

Leparada district has also reported widespread destruction as overflowing rivers, flash floods and landslides affected multiple localities, causing extensive damage to infrastructure and transportation networks.

Meanwhile, rescue teams continue searching for two people who have remained missing for more than a week after devastating flash floods struck Keyi Panyor district.

The flood situation in neighbouring Assam has also deteriorated significantly. According to official reports, more than 45,500 people have been affected across five districts, while one person has been reported missing.

The affected districts include Chirang, Dhemaji, Dibrugarh, Lakhimpur and Nalbari. Among them, Dhemaji has emerged as the worst-affected district, with more than 41,000 residents impacted after rising river levels inundated villages, damaged agricultural land and forced thousands of people to move to safer locations.

Authorities in both Arunachal Pradesh and Assam have intensified rescue and relief operations as heavy rainfall continues across the region. Disaster response agencies remain on high alert while restoration of damaged roads, bridges and essential public services continues. With large areas still inaccessible and weather conditions remaining adverse, the unfolding disaster highlights the continuing vulnerability of the northeastern states to extreme monsoon events and the urgent need for sustained relief and infrastructure restoration.