Search begins for the missing after severe floods in Nepal, including 3 Dutch

A search for the missing Dutch has begun in the border region between Nepal and China after the region was suddenly hit by a major flood. There is still no trace of the three, Nepalese police confirmed to ANP upon request.

Two of the three were part of a group of 80 on a pilgrimage to the holy Mount Kailash, organized by a group called the Isha Foundation. The foundation representatives said earlier that they had lost contact with the group 9 minutes before the flood hit the village they had just arrived at. The third missing person is a Dutch woman that had immigrated to Nepal.

The flash flood disaster has led to 903 deaths in Nepal, with 4,247 people missing, including hundreds of foreign nationals. The total number of deaths is even higher when combined with figures from China due to the impact on the Tibetan side of the border. At least 16 people died there, and 546 are reportedly missing.

Fearing an infectious disease outbreak, Nepalese authorities have reportedly begun burying the bodies of unidentified victims.

The collapse of a glacier may have led to a massive amount of mud, water, and debris sliding through inhabited areas last week, experts believe. Video footage showed people trying to flee as buildings were swept away. A comparison of satellite images from the European Space Agency’s Copernicus project suggests the destruction of about 2,500 buildings, according to AFP.

The 590 foreigners missing in Nepal are citizens of 39 different countries. Since Wednesday’s floods, 323 foreigners have been rescued, said the Nepalese Ministry of Foreign Affairs in an update on Monday.

Police in Nepal have called upon family members of missing persons to cooperate with DNA testing so that bodies can be identified more easily. While Nepalese relatives can send a blood sample, family members from abroad were asked to send DNA profiles.

Chinese authorities said this past weekend that 261 foreigners from 23 countries were missing in Tibet. Chinese leader Xi Jinping said during a visit to Kyrgyzstan that everything is being done to find those who are missing.

The families of Maiike Moolhuijsen and Christiaan Berghuis have recently said that they 'live between hope and terror and experience the impact of the ongoing uncertainty daily.” The statement comes from a declaration distributed by an advocacy group for victims’ families, Namens de Familie.