160 dead, hundreds missing: What we know about the Nepal-Tibet disaster
Nepal's disaster agency said that 823 people remained out of contact on Thursday, more than 24 hours after a deadly flood tore through the border region with Tibet.
A massive flood and landslide disaster on the Nepal-Tibet border has killed at least 160 people and left hundreds missing. According to Nepali police, 157 bodies have been recovered, while Chinese state media reported three deaths. The disaster, which occurred on Wednesday, swept away entire villages and market areas, with many of the missing being foreign tourists.
The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) said that entire villages and market areas had been "wiped out". Surveillance footage from the Chinese side of the border shows a massive wall of mud and debris crashing over a building, engulfing it as dozens of people ran for their lives. The surge swept away buses and cars.
Rescue teams are working to find those missing, with Nepal's tourism ministry reporting that 403 tourists, including 341 foreigners, were unaccounted for several hours after the disaster. The US Geological Survey believes the disaster was caused by a glacial collapse. According to IOL, 823 people remained out of contact on Thursday, more than 24 hours after the disaster struck.
Brief written by urgent.news from IOL, Daily Trust, Hong Kong Free Press, Dawn — 4 reports on this story. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
