Nepal floods and landslides kill 18 in Ilam, disrupt travel

Heavy rains over the weekend set off landslides and flash floods across large parts of Nepal, killing at least 18 people in Ilam district and prompting widespread evacuations, road closures and disruptions to domestic air travel. Authorities said the downpours began late Saturday and continued into Sunday, affecting eastern and central provinces and swamping riverbanks in and around the Kathmandu Valley.

Police and district officials reported that separate landslides in Ilam killed at least 18 people, several in single-family homes that were buried while occupants slept. Rescue teams from the Nepal Army, Armed Police Force and local police were deployed to the worst-hit communities, and helicopters were pressed into service to evacuate the injured and deliver relief supplies. Officials cautioned that casualty figures were preliminary and that further deaths and missing persons might be discovered as teams reach isolated areas.

Officials also reported additional fatalities outside Ilam. District authorities said lightning strikes in the south killed three people and one person died in flooding in Udayapur, bringing some counts of the national toll to at least 22. Authorities said...