India | Building collapses outside Mumbai after heavy rain; 12 dead

Twelve people were killed early yesterday when an old building on the outskirts of Mumbai collapsed after days of heavy rain, an Indian official said. The seven other residents of the building were rescued after it collapsed shortly after midnight, said S.S. Guleria, Deputy Inspector General of the National Disaster Response Force. The building, located in the Mumbai suburb of Thane, was more than 50 years old and had been damaged by the rain, Guleria said. Mumbai and its surrounding areas in the western Indian state of Maharashtra experience heavy rainfall during the monsoon season, which runs from June through September. The rains routinely damage buildings, especially those that are either old or poorly built.

Myanmar | Floodwaters moving downriver pose new threat

New devastation is feared in Myanmar as water from the badly flooded central and northern regions flows down rivers to the country’s more populous areas. The U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs reported yesterday that water levels have receded in the main town in hard-hit Sagaing Division in the northwest. But it warned that as water moves downriver, floods are likely to expand and affect additional areas. Officials say the death toll from weeks of almost continuous rain is 46, with more than 200,000 people affected by flooding in 11 of the country’s 14 states and divisions.