Nepal’s flash flood disaster continued to worsen on Monday as the death toll climbed to 903, while 4,247 people remained missing. Rescue teams were still recovering bodies from eight affected districts and searching for people who may have been trapped or stranded following the disaster.
The floods struck on August 26 after an ice and rock avalanche, believed to have followed a glacial collapse near the Nepal-Tibet border, sent huge volumes of water, mud and debris downstream. The powerful surge swept through towns and villages across northern and central Nepal, damaging critical infrastructure and destroying hydropower facilities.
Nepal’s National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority (NDRRMA) said 272 bodies had been recovered from Chitwan, the highest number among the affected districts. Nawalparasi East reported 207 deaths, followed by 151 in Nawalparasi West and 62 in Gorkha.
Another 95 bodies were recovered from Nuwakot, 55 from Dhading, 37 from Tanahu and 24 from Rasuwa, according to the NDRRMA.
The authority said 4,247 people were still missing, including 85 security personnel and 320 foreign nationals. Earlier, Nepal’s disaster management authority reported that 933 people working at hydropower projects in the flood-hit region were missing, Reuters reported.
Rescue operations have entered their fifth day, with authorities racing against time to locate missing people and reach those stranded in remote areas.
The Red Cross has estimated that more than 90,000 people are likely to have been affected by the disaster. China has attributed the extreme weather to the effects of climate change.
The Bhotekoshi River, flowing south from the Himalayan border region, carried the floodwaters downstream on August 26, triggering widespread destruction.
The disaster, believed to have been caused by a collapse or avalanche of ice and rock near the Nepal-Tibet border, has devastated communities across northern and central Nepal and caused extensive damage to key infrastructure.
