Kathmandu: The death toll from flash floods in central Nepal rose to 538 on Friday, August 28, with more bodies recovered as search and rescue operations continue with caution following the threat of fresh flooding due to an increase in the water level of a lake formed by avalanches on the border with Tibet.
In a statement, Nepal Police said the bodies were recovered from eight districts of the Himalayan nation.
According to the police, 134 dead bodies were recovered from Nawalparasi East, 221 from Chitwan, 46 from Gorkha and 37 from Nuwakot.
Similarly, 33 bodies were recovered from Dhading, 28 from Tanu, 27 from Nawalparasi West and 12 from Rasuwa.
Search and rescue operations continued for the third day of the tragic incident with the mobilisation of 7,451 security personnel, including 2,391 Nepal Army personnel, the statement said.
So far, 1,545 injured and stranded people have been rescued from various affected regions. Among them, 84 are currently undergoing treatment in various hospitals in Kathmandu.
The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority (NDRRMA) on Friday said the rise in the water level at the site where a devastating flash flood occurred earlier this week raised the risk of another flood in the area.
The warning comes after a massive flash flood swept through Rasuwa and other parts of central Nepal on Wednesday, August 26, killing hundreds and leaving thousands missing.
The NDRRMA urged people involved in search and rescue operations, as well as those staying in the Bhotekoshi and Trishuli areas for various reasons, to remain highly alert and immediately move to safer places if they face any risk.
China says 5 killed, 558 missing, including 260 foreigners
China on Friday said five people were killed and 558 others, including 260 foreigners, remain missing after flash floods struck a port along the China-Nepal border in Tibet.
The flash floods hit Gyirong County in the Tibet Autonomous Region on Wednesday, sweeping through villages and towns near the border area. It claimed as many as 538 lives in Nepal.
According to Tibet’s emergency management department, the death toll in the region has risen to five, while 558 people are still missing. Among the missing, 260 have been identified as foreign nationals, but their nationalities have not been released yet.
An ice-rock avalanche triggered by a glacial collapse near the Nepal-Tibet border sent a torrent of water, mud and debris downstream through central Nepal on Wednesday, devastating towns and villages, washing away homes, vehicles, roads and bridges, and damaging hydropower projects.
Nepal PM’s cabinet to donate month’s salary to disaster relief fund
Nepal Prime Minister Balendra Shah and members of his cabinet will donate a month’s salary to the disaster relief fund following the devastating flash floods in the country that left over 500 people dead.
