You're reading: Flood death toll rises to 62 in India’s northeast

GAUHATI, India — Officials say the death toll from monsoon rains in northeastern India has risen to 62 and more than 2,000 villages have been inundated as rivers have breached their banks.

Assam state agriculture minister Nilomoni Sen Deka said Sunday that more than a week of heavy monsoon rains caused the massive Brahmaputra river to exceed danger levels. He said floods and landslides have killed 62 people so far.

Nearly 2 million people have been affected by the disaster. Thousands of homes have been destroyed and more than 480,000 people have sought shelter in government-run relief camps.

The monsoon season in India begins in June and ends in September.

Assam suffers flooding almost every year but this year’s disaster is the worst in at least a decade.