In Pictures

Glacier collapse sends floods over Nepal-China border, killing at least 330 and leaving more than 1,300 missing.

Save

Share

Rescue teams are searching for hundreds of missing people on the border between Nepal and China after a catastrophic torrent of floodwater and mud swept through several communities following a glacier collapse the previous day.

The disaster has left at least 330 people dead and more than 1,300 missing, including foreigners and pilgrims. Hundreds of others are displaced across the Himalayan region, authorities said.

Nepali officials say search efforts are being complicated because dozens of bridges have been destroyed and damage to nearly 40km (25 miles) of roads.

Nepali army helicopter operations rescued more than 100 people from flood-affected areas on Thursday, said army spokesman, Brigadier General Raja Ram Basnet.

At least eight foreign nationals were airlifted to the capital, Kathmandu, and army teams evacuated people trapped in facilities linked to the Trishuli hydropower project, he added.

Rescuers found bodies about 100 kilometres (60 miles) downstream from the disaster zone in Chitwan district. Dozens of injured people have been transported to Kathmandu for advanced medical care.

The focus has shifted from rescue to large-scale relief operations in flood-hit districts, said Bishal Kumar Bhandari, chairperson of the Nepal Red Cross Society. About 1,200 people have been displaced from at least three villages, he added.

In Tibet, a mudslide near the land border crossing at Gyirong on Wednesday left surrounding areas covered in mud more than 1.5 metres (5 feet) deep on average, with some sections of road exceeding 2 metres (6 feet), reported the Chinese state broadcaster CCTV.