A massive flood originating in China struck northern Nepal this Wednesday, leaving at least 17 dead and hundreds missing on both sides of the Himalayas. Many of the latter are tourists and pilgrims, particularly Hindus heading to Mount Kailash in Tibet. The most affected area is reportedly the border itself, in Nepal’s Rasuwa district, where the customs post has been swept away along with its 14 employees.
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Both Kathmandu and Beijing are unsuccessfully trying to establish contact with several border posts, also swallowed by the current. The total number of foreigners in the risk area who have lost contact exceeds three hundred. The vast majority are Hindu pilgrims. Among them, forty Indian-American citizens. A dozen agencies admit to having lost contact with their clients, totaling nearly 400 pilgrims who were supposed to cross the Sino-Nepalese border this Wednesday heading to Mount Kailash, the abode of Shiva.
Likewise, South Korea reports having lost track of eight of its citizens, employees of a hydroelectric company, while another ten from a different firm have been located but have not yet been rescued.
Contact has also not been possible with 40 to 50 car or truck drivers and dozens of security forces members, due to network outages and road closures caused by the floods.
One district further down, in Nuwakot, local Nepalese have already recovered eight bodies swept away by the waters in two different localities. In other districts even farther from the impact zone, drowned victims are also being found. Several bridges have been completely torn away, not only near the border but also just 25 kilometers from Kathmandu, in Trishuli Bazar, where the power of the current has caused several buildings to collapse.
The situation remains unclear on the Chinese side, although authorities already acknowledge there are victims, as well as a high number of missing persons. President Xi Jinping has ordered that no effort be spared to rescue those affected.
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Downstream, in Nepal, residents of riverside areas have been advised to move to higher ground. Four army helicopters and eight private ones have reportedly rescued at least 25 people, despite the difficulty of operating while the water level remains high.
The sudden surge of water, around 9:15 a.m. local time, overflowed the Bhote Koshi river, hitting the towns of Timure, Syabrubesi, and Rasuwagadhi, 180 kilometers north of Kathmandu. The Nepalese Foreign Minister reported late Wednesday that the disaster’s origin was an earthquake on Tibetan soil that triggered an avalanche, blocking the course of a river which eventually violently overflowed, flooding everything in its path.
Last year, the Friendship Bridge between China and Nepal, in the same Rasuwagadhi, was destroyed by another flood, leaving eight dead and disrupting communications for months. The overflow of a glacial lake was the cause of that disaster.
This time, two hydroelectric infrastructures and one solar facility have been severely damaged in northern Nepal, depriving the national grid of 12% of its capacity.
In the municipality of Uttargaya, a local official speaks of “a dozen affected settlements.” Namely, Syaphrubesi, Betrawati, Mailung, Salletar, Shantibazar, Pairebesi, Khalti Basti, Sole, Battar, and Trishuli. The river in question, which originates in Tibet, crosses Nepal before entering India, changing its name at each border.
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