Flood risk forces halt to rescues in Tibet, as Nepal death toll rises to 469

Nepal's foreign affairs ministry has declared that the country does not require assistance from other nations for conducting search and rescue operations following a catastrophic flash flood that devastated towns. According to Lok Bahadur Chhetri, a spokesperson for the foreign ministry, Nepal's security agencies are currently undertaking the search and rescue operation, and they do not need any external aid at this time.

This decision follows numerous requests from various countries and organizations to deploy their own search and rescue teams. The foreign ministry asserts that Nepal's own security agencies are capable of managing the operation effectively. The decision is based on the government's learnings from the 2015 Nepal earthquake, where foreign search and rescue teams caused significant coordination and management issues.

An emergency response team (ERT) has been established by Nepal's foreign affairs ministry to assist foreign nationals affected by the floods. The ERT will serve as the central coordinating body within the ministry for search, rescue, information verification, and consular assistance related to the flood incident. So far, the death toll has risen to 469, with approximately 1,000 still missing in Nepal and Tibet, where a glacier collapse led to a massive surge of rock, ice, mud, and debris in the Himalayan mountain river systems.