The death toll from severe monsoon flooding across India rose to at least 83 with seven more fatalities confirmed in western Gujarat state in the last twenty-four hours, officials said on Tuesday.

Gujarat and northeastern Assam state have been hardest hit by the deluge.

A.J Shah, director of relief operations with the Gujarat government, confirmed seven deaths in the state since Monday.

"Two persons drowned, four died after they were struck by lightning (in separate incidents) and the body of one of the four persons who were swept away in a river three days back was recovered," Shah said.

At least 18 people have now lost their lives in Gujarat since the monsoon intensified across the western state.

In hilly Assam 60 people have been killed and a state-wide emergency relief operation has been underway since the wet season arrived in April.

At least five people were killed by a landslide last week in a remote village in Arunachal Pradesh state along the border with China.

Pockets of the eastern states of Odisha and Bihar have also been affected by torrential rains and flash floods.

The government has called in the army to help with relief and rescue operations in some parts of the worst-hit states.

Heavy rainfall hits Istanbul causing transport chaos
Istanbul (AFP) July 18, 2017 - Heavy rainfall hit Istanbul on Tuesday, flooding streets and causing disruption to public transport, officials and AFP correspondents said.

People were forced to wade through the water after flash floods stranded cars and caused tram lines to be suspended in the city.

Images shared on social media and Turkish television showed flooding inside metro stations and residents forced to wait for inflatable boats to rescue them.

In Uskudar, a district on the Asian side of Istanbul, the rough waters of the Bosphorus overflowed leaving roads and squares covered.

Several boats belonging to the city's shipping authority had to be nailed down to the port because of rain and strong winds of up to 80 kilometres per hour (50 miles per hour).

Istanbul governorate warned the public not to use their cars unless absolutely necessary while the Eurasia tunnel which opened last year was also temporarily closed one way.

The municipality said on average 65 millimetres (2.5 inches) of rain fell while the district of Silivri experienced as much as 128 millimetres.

Prime Minister Binali Yildirim said it was a "disaster", adding: "In a short period, an unusual amount of rain fell" for the time of year.

"But the mayor and the governorate are cooperating to deal with the situation in the best way," Yildirim said.

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Japan Abe sees devastation in flood-hit area
Tokyo (AFP) July 12, 2017
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Wednesday visited southern regions devastated by torrential rains and flooding that killed two dozen people as the toll was likely to rise. Heavy seasonal rains last week caused severe flooding that tore up roads and destroyed houses on Japan's southernmost island of Kyushu, with hundreds of thousands of people forced to flee their homes. At least 25 ... read more

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