In Nepal, the death toll from last week’s devastating floods and mudslides has risen to 903, while more than 4,247 people remain untraceable.
According to the Nepal’s National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority, the figure has increased from Sunday’s figure of 2,502. Bodies have been recovered from all eight affected districts of Nepal as rescuers race against time to search for those missing and rescue those stranded.
Meanwhile, at least 933 workers are believed to be trapped at around half a dozen hydropower projects. Rescue teams backed by India and other experts are searching around half a dozen blocked hydropower tunnels, including Trishuli-3A. In Tibet, the death toll currently stands at 16, with 546 reported to be missing. The disaster sent a torrent of ice, rock, mud and debris through towns and villages along the Nepal-Tibet border.
An Indian tunnel rescue team is working with the Nepali Army at hydropower sites in Chilime and Langtang. Earth-moving machinery and soldiers have been working through the night to clear debris. Nepali Army spokesperson Raja Ram Basnet said the massive deposits are making tunnel access difficult.
A preliminary study by Nepali scientists found the floods were triggered by a massive ice-rock avalanche at around 5,200 metres in Rasuwa’s Langtang-Lirung area. The debris entered the Lhende River before surging through the Bhotekoshi and Trishuli.
Nepali Prime Minister Balendra Shah called the floods an “unprecedented and devastating natural disaster”, with nearly 21,000 security personnel involved in rescue operations. The Red Cross estimates more than 90,000 people were affected, while authorities continue recovering and identifying bodies.
