Death toll rises in India flooding, slides

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DISPUR, India, July 9 (UPI) -- The death toll from flooding and landslides in India's Assam province has risen to at least 140, with 17 people reported missing, authorities said.

Floodwaters from the Brahmaputra River inundated more than 2 million acres of land.

The waters have begun to recede but still flow well above the danger level in most districts in the province, the Press Trust of India reported Monday.

The death toll from floods had risen to 124, officials said.

It is the worst flooding in the remote region since 2004, the news agency reported.

About 2.4 million people were driven from their homes in 4,540 flood-stricken villages and an estimated 500,000 others took refuge in 630 relief camps.

Kaziranga National Park officials said about 573 animals at the park died in the floods, The Times of India reported.

"As of Sunday, we found 11 more carcasses of hog deer and three sambars in Kaziranga. We are still looking for more carcasses. We are using elephants to move inside the park as all the roads have been damaged in the deluge," said the park director, identified as S. Bora.