Flood situation in Bihar grim, toll mounts to 280

Twelve bodies have so far been recovered while an intense search continued to locate the remaining missing people, the sources said.

State Water Resource Department sources said Gandak breached its Saran embankment between 82 and 83 miles submerging vast countryside areas in Gopalganj and Saran districts.

Swirling waters of Ganga washed away the flanks of the Bhagalpur-Sahebganj road in a stretch of two kilometres near Trimohan village under Kahalgaon subdivision in Bhagalpur district.

Ganga was flowing 24 cm above the danger mark at Kahalgaon and was still maintaining rising trend posing fresh threat to vast areas in Bhagalpur and Katihar, the sources said.

Other major rivers like Gandak, Burhi Gandak, Kosi, Mahananda, Bagmati and Adhwara group of rivers maintained tremendous pressure on their embankments, they said claiming that flood-fighting operations continued on a war-footing to prevent breach and check erosions.

According to Central Water Commission report, Burhi Gandak overtopped the danger mark by 24 cm, 124 cm, 165 cm and 69 cm at Sikanderpur, Samastipur, Rosera and Khagaria while Bagmati overflowed the danger level by 63 cm and 189 cm at Benibad and Hayaghat.

Turbulent Kosi was still flowing above the danger mark by 160 cm and 118 cm by Baltara and Kursela.

Adhwara group of rivers too were in the spate and flowing above the danger mark by 40 cm and 129 cm at Kamtaul and Ekmighat, the report said.

Nearly five million people continue to reel under the impact of floods in more than 3200 villages spread over 21 districts in north and central Bihar. Standing crops and other property, worth over Rs 60 crore, have so far been destroyed in the current spell of floods.