Death Toll Rises in Nepal-China Border Disaster

Rescuers worked through mud and debris Friday in areas devastated by a catastrophic flash flood along the Himalayan border between Nepal and China, continuing the search for hundreds of people still missing as the death toll rose and authorities warned that a newly formed, overflowing lake could trigger further flooding.

Nepali police say the death toll there has risen to 547, and the disaster management authority said Friday that 977 people were still unaccounted for. Meanwhile, there is little information on survivors on the Chinese side, where the death toll rose to five Friday and China state media reported 558 people were missing.

Flood survivors, including injured people, were taken to Kathmandu and other locations. Foreigners from multiple countries were among the missing, many of them trekkers and pilgrims.

Randhir Jaiswal, Indian External Affairs Ministry spokesman, told reporters that 320 Indian nationals remain uncontactable. He said 96 Indians who were stranded on the Chinese side have crossed over to Nepal by land and efforts were being made to evacuate them.

India also will send another flight with relief supplies along with a tunnel rescue team, Jaiswal said. One portable, prefabricated bridge has also been sent to Nepal to help restore connectivity in the flood-affected areas, he said.

Even as rescuers worked through mud and debris Friday in areas devastated by the floods, authorities warned that a newly formed, overflowing lake could trigger further flooding.

Nepalese authorities said all security personnel, rescue workers and members of the public deployed in rescue and relief efforts have been told to remain on high alert and immediately move to a safe location if necessary.

Nepal police spokesperson Abi Narayan Kafle told The Associated Press that the rescue operation is continuing but with authorities remaining on high alert.

“It hasn’t stopped,” he said.

Satellite imagery shown by Chinese state broadcaster CCTV seems to indicate that the newly formed lake was in the same area as where the glacial detachment event happened on Wednesday that resulted in the chain of events leading to catastrophic damage downstream.

Nepal’s disaster management authority said that satellite imagery and preliminary assessments indicate that the river has been blocked upstream, creating a growing lake that could burst and trigger a sudden downstream flood.