Nepal says death toll rises to 1,252 as rescue operations continue
Summary
Nepal said at least 1,252 people have died as catastrophic floods on the China-Nepal border continue to devastate mountain districts and rescue operations remain underway Thursday in Kathmandu, Nepal. The disaster has killed more than 1,270 people overall, with 4,216 missing in Nepal and 4,757 missing across Nepal and China. Aid groups are considering porters, helicopters and cargo drones to reach isolated areas, while army teams keep searching hydropower tunnels for survivors.
Key Facts
- Chinese state media said 21 people were killed in Tibet, bringing the overall death toll from the August 26 disaster to 1,273.
- Nearly 600 foreigners from more than 30 nationalities are missing, and the U.S. State Department said 75 Americans are unaccounted for.
- The floods destroyed roads, bridges and other infrastructure, making relief efforts more difficult.
- Lila Pieters Yahia, the UN resident coordinator for Nepal, said aid agencies were discussing helicopters, cargo drones and porters to deliver aid.
- Nepali army personnel and foreign experts were searching hydropower tunnels with excavators and other heavy equipment for survivors feared trapped inside.
Relatives of Bishi Pandey, 48, mourn during his symbolic cremation using an effigy as his body remains missing in the aftermath of flash floods, at Pashupatinath temple in Kathmandu, Sept. 3. AFP-Yonhap
KATHMANDU, Nepal — Catastrophic floods on the China-Nepal border have killed at least 1,252 people in Nepal, the disaster authority said Thursday, taking overall deaths to more than 1,270.
Chinese state media earlier confirmed 21 people were killed in Tibet, bringing the total toll from the disaster that struck on August 26 to 1,273.
The number of missing in Nepal remained 4,216, as rescue operations continued on a war-footing.
In China, state media say there are 541 people missing, taking the overall number to 4,757.
Nearly 600 foreigners from over 30 nationalities are also missing, with Indians making up one of the largest proportions.
Some 75 Americans are also unaccounted for, according to the State Department on Wednesday.
People look at photographs of missing people on a wall outside Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital following the deadly flash floods and mudslide, reacts outside Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital, in Kathmandu, Nepal, Sept. 2. Reuters-Yonhap
In Kathmandu, desperate families of some of the missing foreigners said they were combing hospitals and morgues for any information about their loved ones.
"I feel desperate, it's been so many days," said 53-year-old American Sanjeev Rai who flew to Nepal after learning that his wife was untraceable.
The floods, which tore through mountain districts, have destroyed roads, bridges and other infrastructure, hampering relief efforts.
Aid agencies said they were considering deploying porters to deliver aid to hard-hit districts close to the border with China.
"We've been discussing with the government how also to use helicopters, cargo drones to be able to deliver aid," Lila Pieters Yahia, the UN resident coordinator for Nepal, told reporters in Kathmandu.
"The beauty of your country (is) you have porters. So we have to go back into also those very simple means to bring the aid as soon as possible."
Long considered the backbone of trekking and mountaineering expeditions in Nepal, porters are known to carry heavy loads for days across steep trails in tough conditions.
Nepali army personnel and rescue teams, including foreign experts, meanwhile continued to search Thursday for survivors feared trapped inside several hydropower tunnels.
The work is ongoing using excavators and other heavy equipment to look for any survivors in the tunnels, the army said.
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