New Delhi: Three children went missing after a boat carrying 24 people capsized after it hit a submerged brick kiln on Friday night in Assam’s Hojai district, officials told PTI on Saturday. The people were moving to safety from the inundated Islampur village when the boat capsized in Raikota area.
“Personnel of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) rescued 21 people, while search operations are underway to trace the three missing children,” Hojai Deputy Commissioner Anupam Choudhury told PTI.
He urged people not to take risk and venture out in the dark in inundated areas and added that people should contact the district administration who will evacuate them through NDRF and SDRF boats.
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A total of 29,745 people have taken shelter in 47 relief camps in the district, after the Kopli river inundated vast tracts of land and affected over 55,150 people in the region, which was also severely affected in the first wave of floods earlier this year.
According to a bulletin issued by the Assam State Disaster Management Authority (ASDMA), another person was reported missing in a separate incident in Hojai on Friday.
In Sonitpur district, a person was reported missing when the boat in which four people were travelling capsized on Friday. Three of them were rescued while a search was underway to trace the missing person.
Assam is severely affected by floods with 18.95 lakh people suffering in 28 districts. So far, 55 people have died in the state due to the deluge and landslides.