South Asian Officials Worry About Flood-Related Epidemics
By VOA News 05 August 2007

A man carries his belongings and wades through floodwaters in Dohrighat, about 270 kilometers (169 miles) south of Allahabad, India, 04 Aug 2007

Officials in South Asia are trying to get food, clean water and medicines to millions of people left stranded or homeless by massive monsoon flooding.

The latest estimates from Western news agencies say the floods have killed about 300 people in India, Bangladesh and Nepal.

However, Indian government figures cited by the U.N. Children's Fund put the death toll at more than 11-hundred since the monsoon season started in June.

The annual flooding has driven an estimated 20 million people from their homes.

Authorities have expressed concern about possible epidemics of malaria, dysentery or encephalitis. They are also worried about starvation, as millions of flood victims have no access to food or clean water.

Authorities have been using helicopters to drop food and medicine to people stranded by the floods.

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