Widespread flooding caused by days of relentless heavy rainfall has submerged low-lying areas across Kalay Township in Sagaing Region—located near the Indian border—forcing hundreds of residents and internally displaced persons (IDPs) to flee to emergency shelters and higher ground.
The Myittha River, alongside several key tributaries—including Nat Chaung, Aung Myin Thar, Sae Gyi, Nat Nan, Zin Ka Lin, and Upote creeks—overflowed its banks, inundating numerous rural villages and urban wards in Kalay town.
"With continuous rain, water levels are expected to keep rising," a local resident told Mizzima. "The eastern, southern, and northern parts of Kalay flood annually. Currently, only higher-ground areas like Tahan and a small section of the downtown center remain dry as the number of evacuees grows."
Floodwaters have submerged more than a dozen villages—including Phaungku, Kyi Kone, Nan Han Nwet, Nan Sawng Pu, Pyin Taw Oo, Sakhan Gyi, Taung Oo, Pyin Thar, Chin Saing, Hto Mar, and Zin Ka Lin—along with low-lying urban wards such as Mingalar Oo Yin, Nyaung Pin Thar, Aung Mingalar, Aung Thitsa, Aung Zeya, Nay Pyi Taw, Kyo Thon Pin, and Thazin.
The deluge inundated local infrastructure, flooding the Phaungku monastery, destroying a church in Khaikam, and sweeping away makeshift IDP shelters along the Myittha River. Authorities and rescue teams were also forced to evacuate several patients from Kalay General Hospital to safer facilities. Extensive agricultural fields and standing crops have been damaged, though full loss estimates remain unavailable.
Infrastructure damage has further complicated relief efforts. In southern Kalay, severed Ooredoo fiber-optic cables have left communities facing severe phone and internet blackouts, with repair crews unable to access affected sites due to high water levels.
Rescue operations are currently underway. Emergency relief centers, including one at Saint Mary’s School (BEHS-3) in downtown Kalay, have been set up to shelter displaced residents.
Local defense forces and administration officials are coordinating rescue logistics. An official from the National Unity Government (NUG) Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Disaster Management confirmed that response teams are assisting residents with household evacuations and navigating flooded roadways. Units from the Chin National Defence Force – Upper Chindwin (CNDF-UCR) are also actively assisting in search-and-rescue efforts.
The flooding in Kalay is part of a broader disaster unfolding across Upper Myanmar. Continuous heavy rains combined with dam water releases have impacted nearly 620,000 people across 25 townships in Sagaing, Mandalay, Magway, and Ayeyarwady regions, as well as Karen State, leaving at least 32 people dead, according to NUG disaster response figures.
