Itanagar, July 8: Fresh flash floods triggered by heavy rainfall inundated parts of Arunachal Pradesh’s Lohit district on Wednesday, damaging homes and infrastructure, prompting large-scale rescue operations, even as the India Meteorological Department (IMD) warned of more heavy to very heavy rainfall across parts of the state.

The worst-hit areas include 43 Mile and Shivaji Nagar, where floodwaters entered residential areas, affecting around 40 houses. Local residents alleged that ongoing hill-cutting and infrastructure works over the past three years had obstructed natural streams and rivulets, worsening the flooding.

The Lohit district administration, along with disaster management officials, launched rescue and relief operations in the affected villages. Teams from the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) and Arunachal Pradesh Police were deployed to evacuate stranded residents and assist affected families.

The IMD had earlier forecast heavy to very heavy rainfall accompanied by thunderstorms over parts of Arunachal Pradesh and issued an Orange Alert for vulnerable districts, warning of the possibility of flash floods, landslides and waterlogging.

The latest flooding comes amid an already difficult monsoon season for the state and coincides with the visit of a high-level Central team led by Nishtha Tiwari, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Home Affairs, which is scheduled to assess flood damage in Arunachal Pradesh.

As part of the visit, the team is expected to reach Koyu in Lower Siang district by an MI-17 helicopter on Wednesday morning to review the flood situation and ongoing relief measures.

Authorities have advised people living in low-lying and landslide-prone areas to remain alert as more spells of intense rainfall are expected over the next few days.