Rescue workers and military personnel continued searching for survivors on Saturday following catastrophic flash floods and landslides along the Nepal-China border, entering the fourth day of disaster response efforts as the confirmed death toll approached 600 people, according to The Associated Press.
Death Toll Climbs Amid Desperate Search for Missing Near Nepal-China Border
The disaster, which struck on Wednesday when a tsunami-like wall of water and debris swept away villages, was triggered by a massive rockfall and glacier collapse in the Himalayan region. Scientists noted the rockfall registered as a magnitude 5.2 seismic event, sending bedrock and ice crashing down from the Langtang Lirung mountain peak.
Rising Casualties and Missing Persons Count
Nepal’s National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority reported the confirmed death toll at 579, while Nepali police separately recorded 553 deaths. On the Chinese side, state media reported the death toll had risen to seven.
The total number of missing people across Nepal and China has soared to nearly 2,500. In Nepal, the number of unaccounted-for individuals reached 1,924 after disaster authorities added hundreds of local residents and hydropower workers to the tally, joining trekkers and pilgrims headed toward Tibet’s sacred Mount Kailash. China’s state media reported between 554 and 558 people missing on the Chinese side. Hundreds of the missing are foreign nationals who were in the area for work, trekking, or pilgrimage, and some bodies have been swept downstream as far away as India.
Emergency services have successfully rescued more than 3,700 people in Nepal, carrying over 3,000 to safety in Kathmandu and other locations via helicopters. However, poor weather conditions forced authorities to put aerial rescue operations on hold on Saturday.
Hydropower Tunnel Rescue and Border Crossing Devastation
Rescue operations faced severe impediments from destroyed roads, bridges, and thick layers of mud. Nepali Army personnel focused heavily on the Upper Trishuli-1 Hydropower Project in Nepal’s Rasuwa district, where authorities believe more than 100 people, including dozens of workers, are trapped inside a mud-filled tunnel.
Nepali Army spokesperson Brig. Gen. Raja Ram Basnet told Cbsnews that finding the entry and exit points of the tunnel is complicated because everything is covered by mud. Rescuers utilized baskets, ropes, and manual labor to reach trapped individuals, working through 4 to 5 feet (1.2 to 1.5 meters) of mud.
Search efforts also targeted the severely damaged Gyirong Port border crossing in Tibet, where Chinese state broadcaster CCTV footage showed rescuers reaching the decimated checkpoint on foot, via rafts, and by drone drops.
Upstream Lake Threat and Humanitarian Impacts
Rescue teams faced recurrent interruptions after authorities issued warnings regarding a new lake formed upstream by the disaster, which initially raised concerns about potential downstream breaches. While Chinese broadcaster CCTV reported Friday that the lake sat at an elevation of 9,680 feet—about 3,280 feet above Gyirong Port—monitoring data from the Chinese Ministry of Water Resources showed the water level had subsequently dropped by 10 meters (32 feet), with flood risks ultimately deemed manageable.
The widespread destruction has also severely impacted children and local infrastructure. According to UNICEF, at least 17,000 children are in urgent need of humanitarian assistance after 18 schools were destroyed and another 20 damaged, forcing remaining facilities to be converted into emergency shelters.
Keep reading
- Footage of Tibet floods isn’t being shown in China
- 2,556 and Counting: Kampala University Masaka Campus Puts Academic Growth to the Test
- Nepal-Tibet Border Flash Flood and Mudslide Leaves 359 Dead and Nearly 2,000 Missing (newsdirectory3.com)
- Nepal floods latest: Number of people missing jumps significantly to nearly 2,000 – follow live (newsy-today.com)
