At least 98 people have died and hundreds remain missing after flash floods struck the Himalayan border regions of Nepal and Tibet (China), with officials warning that parts of India are also at risk.
The disaster resulted from a surge of mud, water, and debris that burst through the banks of a river separating China and Nepal. In Nepal, homes, roads, bridges, and power stations were swept away, while Tibetan officials warned of potentially major casualties.
Authorities have issued warnings for residents in several districts to avoid the Bhote Koshi, Trishuli, and Narayani rivers in Nepal.
Nepalese officials reported that 403 people are missing, including 341 foreigners from India, the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, South Korea, and Malaysia.
According to Nepal’s tourism board, more than 100 of the missing are Indian pilgrims and members of the Indian diaspora traveling to Mount Kailash in Tibet, a sacred Hindu site. Additionally, at least 62 missing Nepali citizens were among local trekkers in Rasuwa, one of the hardest‑hit districts.
In Tibet, China’s state broadcaster reported at least three fatalities and 265 people missing.
Investigators are still determining the exact trigger. The U.S. Geological Survey recorded a magnitude‑4.4 earthquake in Nepal early Wednesday near the Tibet border. Seismic activity may have dislodged a large ice block from a glacier, which slammed into a mountain valley and produced a sudden downstream surge on the Lhende Khola, a tributary of the Bhote Koshi.
Officials caution that flooding could worsen because sections of the river remain clogged with ice, rocks, and debris.
Flood alerts have also been issued for the Indian states of Bihar and Uttar Pradesh, which border Nepal and lie downstream of the affected rivers.
Nepalese police said they cannot yet gauge the full extent of the damage. Rescuers noted that helicopters cannot land in the affected areas of Syapru Besi and Timure in Rasuwa until water levels drop, and heavy monsoon rains continue to impede relief operations.
Television footage showed collapsed homes floating in floodwaters, submerged vehicles, a metal bridge being swept away, and entire villages inundated by water, mud, and debris.
“There could be heavy casualties or significant property loss,” said Narendra Pariyar, the district administrator, urging residents living along the Bhote Koshi to seek higher ground.
“Devastation is visible everywhere,” said Tula Bahadur BK, a health worker in Rasuwa. “Riverside settlements have been completely washed away; five of my own relatives are still missing.”
Nepal’s energy ministry said electricity supplies have been severely disrupted, largely due to the destruction of hydroelectric plants.
Police and military personnel are participating in the rescue effort, Prime Minister Balendra Shah said, adding that instructions have been issued to evacuate low‑lying areas to safer locations and that riverside residents should exercise heightened caution and remain alert.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said he had spoken with Shah and offered Nepal “all possible types of humanitarian assistance.”
China’s official Xinhua news agency stated that the flash flood occurred on the Nepalese side of the border, damaging roads, communications, and power infrastructure in the Shigatse region.
According to state broadcaster CCTV, Chinese authorities are conducting large‑scale search and rescue operations in the Gyirong area of Tibet.
Chinese President Xi Jinping called for an all‑out search for the missing and urged improved monitoring and early‑warning systems to prevent secondary disasters.
The Himalayan region, covering Nepal, India, China, and Bhutan, is especially prone to floods and landslides because it is warming faster than the global average due to climate change.
Research indicates that extreme weather events such as heatwaves and heavy rainfall are becoming more common. Nepal’s snow‑capped peaks have lost nearly one‑third of their ice over the past three decades, according to a 2023 United Nations report, prompting experts to demand enhanced surveillance and early‑warning networks across the Himalayas.
Last year, a flood on the Bhote Koshi claimed nine lives and destroyed the “friendship bridge” linking Nepal and China, disrupting cross‑border trade and transport for months.
Earlier this year, researchers in Kathmandu found that glaciers across the Hindu Kush are melting at an accelerating pace, with ice loss rates doubling since 2000.
