The death toll as a result of the heavy rains and flooding that affected Karnataka in early August has gone up to 88, a report by the Chief Minister's office stated on Thursday.
The number of houses damaged by the floods exceeded one lakh, while six persons including two from Belagavi, three from Kodagu and one from Haveri, continue to be missing.
The disaster affected 103 out of the 176 taluks in the state in 22 districts. Floods and landslides prompted rescue and evacuation operations in Belagavi, Bagalkot, Raichur, Yadgir, Dakshina Kannada, Uttara Kannada, Kodagu, Shivamogga, Chikkamagaluru, Mysuru and Hassan.
Twenty-four of the deaths reported so far were from Belagavi district, the highest in the state. The district in northern Karnataka and its neighboring areas were flooded due to overflowing of the upper Krishna river basin. Twenty-eight thousand houses were damaged due to the floods in Belagavi alone. 156 relief camps have been opened as of Thursday in Belagavi, while 121 relief camps are open in Bagalkot district. More than 1.5 lakh people are staying in relief camps in these two districts, while the total number of people in relief camps in the state is 1,59,991.
Thirteen persons were reported dead in Kodagu district and three persons are still missing after a major landslide in Thora village on August 9. Landslides struck Kodagu a year after devastating floods and landslides took the lives of 18 people.
Ten people were reported dead in Shivamogga, where heavy rains in the western part of the district close to the Western Ghats caused flooding and prompted emergency rescue operations.