Tens of thousands flee India flooding; 39 dead

An Indian child balances herself on dry area as she crosses a flooded street in Hyderabad, India, Friday, Oct. 25, 2013. Heavy rains triggered by northeast monsoon have lashed several parts of Andhra Pradesh state for the fourth consecutive day Friday prompting authorities to evacuate many residents from low-lying areas, according to local reports. (AP Photo/Mahesh Kumar A.)
NEW DELHI (AP) — Days of torrential rains have unleashed floods in southeast India that have killed dozens of people and forced the evacuation of more than 70,000 others from hundreds of low-lying villages.

As of Saturday, 39 people had died in flood-related incidents in Andhra Pradesh and Orissa states since the rains began Monday, according to officials quoted by the Press Trust of India. Many drowned when swept away by surging waters or were killed when weakened walls collapsed onto them.

Hundreds of villages were inundated and crops were being ruined in the so-called Rice Bowl of India. Railway services have been suspended along routes where tracks were submerged or damaged.

Residents of India's high-tech hub of Hyderabad were wading through knee-deep water surging through the streets.

The local Disaster Management Department said evacuated residents were sheltering in 178 camps, while relief workers in boats and helicopters were working to help or rescue hundreds of thousands stranded by floods that have swamped both coastal and inland regions along rivers.

Both Andhra Pradesh and Orissa were hit two weeks ago by a powerful cyclone that prompted authorities to evacuate nearly a million people. Cyclone Phailin destroyed hundreds of thousands of homes, many of them simple huts made of mud, wood and thatch, while causing hundreds of billions of dollars in crop damage.

India's Meteorological Department on Saturday forecast the rains to continue for at least another day.

More images from this article

Indian children play with paper boats outside their flooded home in Hyderabad, India, Friday, Oct. 25, 2013. Heavy rains triggered by northeast monsoon have lashed several parts of Andhra Pradesh state for the fourth consecutive day Friday prompting authorities to evacuate many residents from low-lying areas, according to local reports. (AP Photo/Mahesh Kumar A.)

Indian villagers help an elderly woman to safer ground after crossing floodwaters in Khurda district, in the eastern Indian state of Orissa, Friday, Oct. 25, 2013. Low pressure induced rains has flooded several parts of the state leaving hundreds of thousands marooned even as choppers launched rescue operations Friday, according to news reports. The area was hit by a powerful cyclone two weeks ago. (AP Photo/Biswaranjan Rout)

Indians wade through a flooded street in Hyderabad, India, Friday, Oct. 25, 2013. Heavy rains triggered by northeast monsoon have lashed several parts of Andhra Pradesh state for the fourth consecutive day Friday prompting authorities to evacuate many residents from low-lying areas, according to local reports. (AP Photo/Mahesh Kumar A.)

An Indian man holds an umbrella and crosses a flooded street in Hyderabad, India, Friday, Oct. 25, 2013. Heavy rains triggered by northeast monsoon have lashed several parts of Andhra Pradesh state for the fourth consecutive day Friday prompting authorities to evacuate many residents from low-lying areas, according to local reports. (AP Photo/Mahesh Kumar A.)

Villagers wade through floodwaters in Banapur village, in Khurda district, in the eastern Indian state of Orissa, Friday, Oct. 25, 2013. Low pressure induced rains has flooded several parts of the state leaving hundreds of thousands marooned even as choppers launched rescue operations Friday, according to news reports. The area was hit by a powerful cyclone two weeks ago. (AP Photo/Biswaranjan Rout)

Villagers wade through floodwaters to reach safer areas in Khurda district, in the eastern Indian state of Orissa, Friday, Oct. 25, 2013. Low pressure induced rains has flooded several parts of the state leaving hundreds of thousands marooned even as choppers launched rescue operations Friday, according to news reports. The area was hit by a powerful cyclone two weeks ago. (AP Photo/Biswaranjan Rout)