DUSHANBE, May 13, 2015, Asia-Plus -- The Gorno Badakhshan Autonomous Region (Gorno Badakhshan or GBAO) is reportedly cut off from other part of the country due to recent mudslides.

The region has not had an overland communication with other part of Tajikistan for already three days as torrential rain on May 11 caused mudslides that damaged in several places the main highway linking Khorog, the capital of the Gorno Badakhshan, to Dushanbe via Kulob, drivers engaged in conveyance of passengers from Dushanbe to Gorno Badakhshan told Asia-Plus Friday afternoon.

According to them, mudslides damaged in some places the Dushanbe-Khorog highway in the Darvoz district and destroyed one highway bridge on Wednesday.

The highway from Khorog to Dushanbe via Rasht Valley is also closed for traffic because sections of this highway in the territories of Darvoz and Sangvor (formerly Tavildara) districts have not been repaired for years, the drivers noted.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Transport (MoT) says a special commission has been set up to assess the actual damage caused by mudslides to the Dushanbe-Khorog highway.  

We will recall that heavy rains this week have caused floods and mudslides that have damaged homes and led to the evacuation of hundreds of people across the country.

On April 11, the floods damaged more than 1,000 homes in several villages in the Roudaki district.

Floods and mudslides were reported in several other districts across Tajikistan as well.

Earlier this week, Tajik authorities said that three people were killed by mudslides caused by heavy rains in northern Tajikistan.

The Committee for Emergency Situations and Civil Defense (CES) under the Government of Tajikistan has urged citizens to refrain from travelling to the affected areas.