Rautahat, Aug. 2 -- As even moderately strong winds sweep across the Tarai, hundreds of trees along the East-West Highway have become looming threats. Bent and weakened by years of exposure and recent storms, many trees now hover dangerously close to the road-ready to collapse at any time without warning.

On July 17, a sal tree fell on the road along the Chandranigahapur-Bagmati section of the highway. Though no one was injured, traffic was paralysed for over an hour and a half. "Had the tree fallen just a few seconds later, it would have crushed a vehicle," said Amar Shrestha, a bakery owner who was driving to Chandranigahapur from Bardibas. "These trees are like ambushes waiting to strike. The government must act before it's too late,"...