Nepal flash flood toll hits 1,252 as fresh Bhotekoshi flood risks loom

Nepal's flood death toll rose to 1,252 as rescuers searched for thousands still missing. Fresh rain in upstream Bhotekoshi areas has heightened fears of another deadly surge.

In Short

• Chitawan recorded the highest body recoveries, followed by both Nawalparasi districts
• Helicopter pilots are navigating vanished river landmarks across altered Rasuwa valleys
• Families are cremating funeral effigies as hopes fade for the missing

The death toll from the devastating flash floods in Nepal rose to 1,252 on Thursday as more bodies were recovered from the affected areas, even as officials warned of possible fresh floods because of continuous rainfall in the upstream areas of the Bhotekoshi River. Joint rescue teams led by the Nepal Army continued search and rescue operations for the ninth day, with 4,875 people still estimated to be missing.

The flash floods were triggered by an ice-rock avalanche near the Nepal-Tibet border on August 26 and devastated towns and villages in northern and central Nepal. On the Chinese side, the toll in the flood that hit Gyirong county in Tibet near the Nepal border rose to 21, while 541 people were still missing as of Wednesday.

Saraswati Bishta, a technician at the Flood Forecasting Division of the Department of Hydrology and Meteorology, said continuous rainfall in the upstream areas of the Bhotekoshi River on Thursday could raise water levels in the Bhotekoshi and Trishuli rivers, as well as in smaller rivers and rivulets flowing through Rasuwa and Nuwakot districts. She urged people living in nearby and downstream areas to remain vigilant.

Bishta said there was a middle-level flash flood risk in rivers in several districts, mainly in the hilly region, including Taplejung, Panchthar, Terhathum, Dhankuta, Sankhuwasabha, Okhaldhunga, Udaypur, Chitawan, Gorkha, Tanahu, Lamjung, Manang, Mustang, Myagdi, Kaski, Syangja, Kathmandu, Lalitpur and Bhaktapur. She added that rivers in mountain regions, including Kalikot, Humla, Jumla, Dailekh, Darchula and Baitadi, were also swelling, creating some flash flood risk.

According to Nepal Police data released on Thursday, 355 bodies have been recovered from Chitawan district, 218 from Nawalparasi East, 208 from Nawalparasi West, including 18 recovered from India and handed over to Nawalparasi West, and 177 from Nuwakot. Another 127 bodies were recovered from Rasuwa district, 69 from Gorkha, 60 from Dhading and 38 from Tanahu.

The floods have changed the landscape of the valleys of Rasuwa and Nuwakot, with helicopter pilots relying on their own discipline and judgement to fly through the steep terrain because riverbanks and familiar landmarks have disappeared, the Kathmandu Post reported. Families of those missing are creating funeral effigies and performing final rites, and dozens of such effigies were cremated in a mass funeral at Pashupati Aryaghat on Wednesday.

Prime Minister Balendra Shah said on Wednesday that the disaster's link to climate change must be strongly raised with the international community. Addressing the House of Representatives, he said the scale and nature of the disaster raised serious questions about the growing risks faced by people living in the Himalayan region because of climate change.

Meanwhile, Nepal's Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lok Bahadur Chhetri said around 100 Nepalese nationals were missing in Tibet after the floods. Around 3,000 Nepalese nationals who had entered Tibet for pilgrimage and business were stranded there, and more than 2,500 of them have safely returned to Nepal through the Hilsa and Tatopani border points, while some also returned by air. He said about 1,500 Nepalese nationals were still stranded at the Kerung border point in Tibet, and officials of the two countries were in consultation on ways to bring them back safely.

With the death toll continuing to rise, thousands still missing and fresh flood risks being reported in several districts, Nepal remained in the grip of a widening disaster on Thursday as rescue efforts and evacuation planning continued.

With PTI Inputs

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