China identifies 261 foreigners missing in Himalayan mudslide

Beijing and Trishuli, China announced on Sunday that 261 foreign nationals from 23 countries were missing across the Tibetan border with Nepal after a devastating mudslide. The death toll in Tibet now stands at 16 people. Authorities from the Tibet Autonomous Region revealed the highest number of missing foreigners came from Nepal at 104, alongside 49 Indian, 33 Latvian, 18 American and 15 British citizens.

Beijing has informed foreign missions about the situation. The disaster was triggered by a glacier collapse on Wednesday, releasing a wave of ice, rock, mud and debris into Himalayan rivers. As of Saturday evening, 16 people had perished in Gyirong County and 546 were unaccounted for. In Nepal, at least 675 people were killed, 2,498 are missing, and 7,514 have been rescued.

The Red Cross estimates over 90,000 people may have been impacted by the disaster. Chinese officials have linked the tragedy to global warming, describing it as a new and prominent feature of cryosphere disasters on the Tibetan plateau. The mudslide took six to seven minutes to travel from the Nepalese side to the Gyirong border crossing, according to CCTV.

Surveillance footage showed water and debris engulfing buildings and people fleeing. China mobilized over 2,100 emergency rescue workers and allocated $32.7 million to support relief efforts, providing aid, supplies, data and rescue experts to Nepal. Both nations are collaborating to identify missing citizens and enhance disaster prevention, mitigation, and climate-change response.