Natural disasters claim 62 lives in two months across Nepal

Kathmandu: A total of 62 people lost their lives across Nepal in a range of natural disasters in the last two months, the home ministry said here on Sunday.

According to the data provided by the ministry, as many as 26 people died due to lightning, 14 people died in fire-related incidents and eight people lost their lives in attacks from wild animals.

Rain-triggered landslides killed nine people, thunderstorms claimed three lives and two persons died of snakebites, it said.

Two children were killed after being buried by a landslide in the Daunne area in the Rolpa district on Sunday. The deceased have been identified as David Khadka, 7, and Ishan Khadka, 2, police said.

Nepal is highly prone to a range of natural hazards, particularly floods, landslides and earthquakes. It ranks 11th and 16th globally in terms of vulnerability to earthquakes and multi-hazards respectively, according to a UN report.

The Himalayan nation is geographically located above the point where the Indian Subcontinent and Eurasian tectonic plates collide, resulting in recurring large-scale earthquakes. The 2015 Nepal earthquakes killed more than 8,900 people.

The country is also vulnerable to the impacts of climate change and is experiencing rising temperatures and erratic precipitation.