By Anadolu Agency
Search and rescue operations backed by helicopters and drones continued Thursday as the death toll from devastating flash floods along the Nepal-China border rose to 180, while over 1,300 people remained missing.
Nepalese authorities confirmed 177 deaths as it recorded 826 people as missing, including tourists, foreign nationals, civilian officials, soldiers, police and local residents.
According to Nepal Tourism Board, a total 644 foreign and local tourists are missing on Nepal’s side of the border.
They include, 178 from India, 65 from the US, 53 from Ukraine, 51 from Malaysia, 35 from Australia, 33 from the UK, 25 from Canada, nine from Singapore, and eight from Germany.
Authorities in Beijing confirmed three deaths, while 558 people remained missing.
China’s Foreign Ministry said that 100 Chinese nationals were missing on Nepalese side of the border due to flash floods.
Ministry spokesman Lin Jian said 260 foreign nationals remain unaccounted for in Tibet, which Beijing identifies as Xizang Autonomous Region.
Soldiers, choppers deployed
The floods were likely triggered by a large chunk of ice breaking off a Himalayan glacier about 20 kilometers (12.4 miles) northeast of the Rasuwa-Rasuwagadhi border crossing, according to satellite imagery.
The collapse sent tons of ice and rock tumbling into the Bhotekoshi River below.
The Nepalese government said it was relocating displaced residents and mobilizing the army and private helicopter operators for search and rescue operations.
The Nepalese Army has deployed hundreds of soldiers and other military assets including choppers to airlift people to safety.
Chitwan district in Bagmati province recorded the highest number of deaths, with 64, followed by Dhading with 27 and Nawalparasi East with 22.
Nepal Police said 28 officers were also still missing.
According to initial reports, the floods destroyed 19 bridges and a 40-kilometer (25-mile) stretch of a key highway, severing transportation routes and complicating rescue efforts.
Nepalese Foreign Minister Shisir Khanal said the floods caused “extreme damage” in several districts, cautioning that only preliminary information was available.
He called for heightened alertness along the Bhotekoshi and Trishuli riverbanks in Nuwakot, Dhading, Gorkha and Chitwan districts, where risks remained high.
Nearly 300 Indians among missing
Separately, Khanal told Indian broadcaster NDTV that “close to 300 Indians have been reported missing and the government is trying to establish contact with them.”
He also said foreign nationals, including Indians, take the route in the affected area for the Masarovar Yatra, a sacred pilgrimage for Hindus.
The number of Indians missing shared by Khanal is quite higher than confirmed by Nepal Tourism Board.
The government declared Rasuwa, Nuwakot and Dhading “disaster crisis areas” for three months.
The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority asked helicopter and drone operators to coordinate rescue efforts with district administrations, security agencies and local governments.
It also advised stranded residents to light fires and produce smoke to signal their locations.
India, China and the World Bank have moved to coordinate financial assistance for rescue, relief and reconstruction efforts in flood-affected areas, according to Nepal’s Finance Ministry.
India’s External Affairs Minister said Thursday morning that New Delhi has sent a second plane carrying 37.5 tonnes of humanitarian assistance and disaster relief material, medicines and food packets for Nepal.
3 dead, 558 missing in Tibet
At least three people were killed and 558 remained missing in China’s Gyirong County following the mudslide disaster, Chinese state media reported.
The mudslide struck Gyirong Port in southwestern Xizang Autonomous Region, commonly known as Tibet, Beijing-based Xinhua News Agency reported Thursday.
A directing group from the Chinese People’s Liberation Army was dispatched to the affected region Thursday to coordinate joint rescue operations by military personnel.
The Gyirong border crossing is the main crossing point for tourists and traffic between China and Nepal.
State Grid Xizang Electric Power Company Limited was assembling emergency power supplies in Gyirong town, according to the report.
China’s Ministry of Emergency Management and National Fire and Rescue Administration dispatched more than 100 firefighters and rescue personnel to the disaster-hit area.
The first chartered plane carrying a rescue team arrived at an airport in Xigaze city early Thursday.