The death toll from landslides and flooding triggered by torrential monsoon rains in Nepal and northern India climbed to at least 109 Saturday as tides of water, mud and rocks swept away houses, officials said.

The death toll from landslides and flooding triggered by torrential monsoon rains in Nepal and northern India climbed to at least 109 Saturday as tides of water, mud and rocks swept away houses, officials said.

The downpours also displaced thousands of people in the scenic Himalayan region and revived memories of a deadly deluge last year that killed more than 5,000 people in the Indian state of Uttarakhand.

The rains in Nepal over the past three days have killed 85 people and left more than 100 others unaccounted for, said national disaster management chief Yadav Prasad Koirala.

"We have recovered 85 bodies so far, 54 people have suffered injuries due to landslides and flooding over the last three days and 113 are still missing," Koirala told AFP.

The rains have damaged roads across the country's western plains bordering India, with poor visibility hindering helicopter rescue efforts to evacuate some 1,500 people stranded in waterlogged homes, said home ministry spokesman Laxmi Prasad Dhakal.

"Because of the damage to roads in the area, we can only deliver relief supplies like tents and medicines by helicopter," Dhakal told AFP.

Army officials rescued some 300 people Saturday, while hundreds more awaited help in the worst-hit districts of Surkhet and Bardiya, where electricity lines snapped, leaving thousands without power.

"We have had no power all day and we are struggling to reach affected people," said Bardiya district official Tej Prasad Paudel.

In neighbouring Banke district, flooding caused by heavy rain washed away homes, district official Jeevan Oli said.

"We've recovered four bodies, including two children. We've looking for four more people whose hut was swept away last night," Oli told AFP.  

The deaths come two weeks after the worst landslide in over a decade smashed into hamlets in northeastern Nepal, killing 156 people.

Monsoon rains have also forced officials to close a major bridge along the country's longest highway after it developed cracks and caved in.