Nepal and China resume flood rescue after lake threat eases, death toll tops 500

NUWAKOT, Nepal — In response to a lake's rising water levels, Nepal and China have restarted rescue efforts suspended earlier due to concerns over an overflowing reservoir. The catastrophic flood triggered by a glacier collapse on Wednesday claimed 547 lives in Nepal and five in China's Tibet region, with nearly 1,000 others still missing.

A powerful surge of rock, ice, mud, and debris swept through numerous Himalayan mountain river systems following the collapse, which also led to the formation of a lake that continued to accumulate and rise in volume. On Friday, the reservoir's water levels had surged to 2.5 million cubic meters (90 million cubic feet), up from an estimated 1.5-2 million cubic meters (50-70 million cubic feet) recorded the previous day.

As the water began to overflow into the Lhende Khola river and then into the Trishuli, authorities and witnesses in Nepal issued warnings, causing military operations to pause for approximately three hours. This prompted fears of more devastation, prompting authorities to resume rescue operations.