KATHMANDU, Aug 27: A total of 165 bodies have so far been recovered following the Bhotekoshi flood in the Rasuwagadhi area along the Nepal-China border.
According to the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority, the identities of the recovered bodies have yet to be established. A total of 826 people remain missing.
Those missing include 44 Nepali Army personnel, 28 Nepal Police personnel and 13 Armed Police Force personnel. Preliminary data from the Nepal Tourism Board show that 579 tourists, including 466 foreign nationals and 113 Nepali nationals, are missing from the affected areas.
The flood has injured 73 people: 43 in Rasuwa, 27 in Nuwakot and three in Dhading. Medical teams from the Nepali Army, Nepal Police, Armed Police Force, National Trauma Center, Bir Hospital and Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital have been deployed to treat the injured at Nuwakot District Hospital.
At around 8:40 a.m. Wednesday, a massive flood carrying debris surged through Lhende Khola after an ice rock landslide occurred about 20 kilometres northeast of the Rasuwagadhi border crossing. The flood originating from the Tibet side flowed through the Bhotekoshi River and passed through Rasuwagadhi, Timure and Syabrubesi before merging into the Trishuli River.
Rasuwa flood: 734 bodies recovered, 2,498 still missing
The flood has created a major risk along the Trishuli river corridor in Rasuwa, Nuwakot, Dhading, Gorkha and Chitwan. The authority said areas including Timure, Syabrubesi, Betrabati, Trishuli, Battar and Devighat have suffered extensive damage.
The flood has damaged 35 motorable bridges, 45 suspension bridges and 40 kilometres of paved roads. Electricity, communications, drinking water and other infrastructure have also been damaged. A detailed assessment of the physical and human losses is underway.
A total of 7,415 security personnel from the Nepali Army, Nepal Police and Armed Police Force have been mobilised for search and rescue operations. This includes 3,318 Nepal Police personnel, 2,355 Nepali Army personnel and 1,742 Armed Police Force personnel.
So far, 239 people have been airlifted from the affected areas. Nepali Army helicopters rescued 211 people, while private helicopters rescued 28. A total of 123 people were airlifted from Timure in Rasuwa alone, including 94 Nepali and 29 foreign nationals.
Temporary accommodation, food, clean drinking water and medicines have been arranged for affected people at nearby Nepali Army barracks. Search, rescue and relief operations are continuing, according to the authority.
Nepali Army and private helicopters have been deployed in Rasuwa and Nuwakot following the floods. Provincial, district and local rescue teams have also been mobilised on high alert, with concerned agencies maintaining continuous coordination.
The Cabinet has declared the Bhotekoshi Trishuli riverside corridor a high-risk area and urged residents of riverbank settlements in Rasuwa, Nuwakot, Dhading, Gorkha and Chitwan to stay in safe locations. It has also decided to declare local levels in the affected districts disaster crisis zones for three months.
The government has decided to provide free medical treatment to the injured, rescue injured and displaced people, and relocate those who have lost their homes to safe locations while arranging food and accommodation.
It has also decided to restore disrupted roads, electricity, telecommunications and drinking water services as soon as possible and begin reconstruction of damaged public structures and infrastructure.
The Cabinet has also decided to provide financial assistance to the families of those who died in the floods in accordance with existing law.
According to the authority, the immediate priorities are searching for missing people, rescuing and treating the injured, ensuring the safety of affected communities, distributing relief and collecting detailed information on the damage.
