KATHMANDU, Nepal (Diya TV) — Rescuers pulled survivors from thick mud Friday as Nepal and China stepped up efforts after devastating flash floods killed nearly 600 people.
Nepal’s disaster-management authority reported 579 deaths. However, Nepali police later put the death toll at 553. More than 3,700 people have escaped the disaster so far. At the same time, the number of missing people in Nepal rose to 1,924 as officials added more names to the list.
China also reported five deaths on its side of the border. State media showed rescue teams evacuating villages in the affected area. Earlier reports said 558 people remained missing in China.
The floods struck Nepal and Tibet on Wednesday after a glacier collapse triggered a massive surge of water and debris. The disaster swept away roads, bridges, buildings and other infrastructure near the border.
Meanwhile, authorities warned that another flood could strike after a new lake formed high in the Himalayan mountains. Experts said the lake formed after a glacier collapse and began to overflow.
Nepali police also issued an alert Friday after receiving reports that a dam on the Tibet side had burst. Officials told security forces, rescue workers and relief teams to stay ready and move to safer areas if needed.
Chinese state broadcaster CCTV reported that the new lake sits about 2,950 meters above sea level. It lies more than 10 kilometers from Gyirong Port, a major border crossing that suffered heavy damage.
However, later monitoring data showed that the lake had started to shrink. China’s Ministry of Water Resources reported that the water level fell about 10 meters from its peak on Thursday morning.
Because of the danger, officials temporarily stopped some rescue teams from entering the disaster zone. Later, about 680 rescuers reached the hardest-hit area around Gyirong by foot and raft.
In Nepal’s Rasuwa district, the army continued searching for more than 100 people believed trapped inside a tunnel at the Upper Trishuli-1 Hydropower Project.
The army said it had already rescued 350 people from the tunnel. Army spokesperson Brig. Gen. Raja Ram Basnet said rescuers remained focused on finding survivors.
The country’s disaster-management authority said helicopters had carried 3,253 people to Kathmandu and other locations. Many survivors suffered injuries and needed medical care.
Nepal’s tourism board said more than 500 foreigners remain among the missing.
Many foreigners travel through the region for work, trekking and religious pilgrimages. Some may have been traveling toward Mount Kailash in Tibet, a sacred site for Hindus, Buddhists and other faiths.
About 90 Americans also remained unaccounted for, according to U.S. officials. President Donald Trump said Thursday that he had offered Nepal’s leaders any assistance they needed.
In India, Vishnuram Ramaswamy said his mother and two sisters were traveling toward the border as part of a pilgrimage to Mount Kailash. He last spoke with them Wednesday morning.
They told him they planned to reach their hotel and call the family. Since then, they have remained unreachable.
As rescue operations continue, Nepali and Chinese authorities face difficult conditions. Mud, damaged roads and the risk of further flooding continue to slow the search. Families, meanwhile, continue to wait for information about their loved ones.
