19 lakh lives impacted as Ganga breaches flood mark in Patna

BREAKING: More than 1.9 million people impacted as the Ganga breaches its record flood mark at Patna, with severe flooding hitting eleven districts across Bihar.

More than 1.9 million people are affected as the Ganga breaks its record flood mark at Patna.

Eleven districts across Bihar are under severe flooding right now. The river has gone past the highest level ever recorded at the state capital, and these aerial pictures show what that means on the ground, whole residential blocks submerged, boats moving where streets used to be.

Patna sits right on the riverbank, home to millions, and when the Ganga rises past its record, the water has nowhere to go but into homes. Across the eleven affected districts, families are moving to higher ground with whatever they can carry, and the scale of relief needed here is enormous.

Nineteen lakh lives, eleven districts, and a river that has never stood this high at Patna. That is where Bihar wakes up this Sunday.

This is Sara White, reporting for HIT.