Nepal Flood Death Toll Surpasses 900, with More than 4,000 Missing

Nepal is making frantic efforts to rescue over 900 workers trapped in hydropower projects inundated by flash floods, with the death toll now exceeding 900, according to the country's disaster authority. Chinese and Indian experts have joined Nepali rescue teams in their urgent mission to locate and save the stranded workers.

The catastrophic flash floods, triggered by a massive glacier collapse on the Nepal-Tibet border, have claimed 903 lives and left 4,247 people missing, including 933 hydropower workers and 500 workers from the Truck and Container Association. The inundation of ice, rock, mud, and debris has blocked tunnels at the hydropower projects, hampering rescue efforts.

Rescue workers have been battling the debris-laden conditions, using heavy machinery and torchlights to clear the tunnels. The Nepali army spokesperson, Raja Ram Basnet, acknowledged the immense challenge posed by the debris, highlighting the urgency to open the tunnels. In Kathmandu, morgues have reached capacity, with families frantically searching for their missing loved ones in other hospitals.

The Red Cross estimates that more than 90,000 individuals may have been affected by the disaster, a phenomenon attributed by China to climate change. Prime Minister Balendra Shah described the flood as an "unprecedented and devastating natural disaster," emphasizing the difficulty in assessing the full extent of the damage. Nearly 21,000 security personnel, along with civilian workers and volunteers, are actively involved in rescue operations.

China has deployed more than 2,100 rescue workers and allocated $33 million to support relief efforts, airdropping equipment and supplies to frontline rescuers. Chinese soldiers have used advanced life-detection equipment to search for the missing. Beijing has confirmed that 261 foreign nationals from 23 countries remain unaccounted for in the affected region of Tibet.