Nepal's wall of missing offers last hope after Himalayan flood

In Nepal's capital, heartbroken families of those missing in the recent devastating floods post photographs on a massive 25-metre wall, clinging to any remaining hope of finding their loved ones. Nearly 4,500 people remain missing after a Himalayan glacier collapse on the China-Nepal border unleashed a tsunami-like surge of icy water and debris, claiming over 900 lives.

Nearly 4,000 of the missing are Nepalese citizens, including nearly 600 foreigners. Prakash Chhetri, 46, posted a picture of his brother alongside nine pilgrims he was carrying to Gosaikunda. Of the nine pilgrims, only one survived by jumping from the vehicle. Near the top of the wall, photographs of family members grouped together are seen - a 30-year-old woman, another aged 35 and her 8-year-old daughter, alongside athletic young men, such as a Sherpa wearing sunglasses and a sports jacket, and a mother proudly holding her toddler.

Debu Sapkota, a 58-year-old driver, arrived to post images of his 83-year-old mother-in-law and granddaughter who were swept away in the town of Trishuli Bazaar. Sapkota now has no hope of their survival, as they were carried away by the torrent. He holds up photos of the two elderly women in traditional clothes, hoping to identify their bodies.

A continuous stream of people, including Chinese workers and engineers at hydropower construction sites, Chinese traders, Indian pilgrims, and an American tourist, visit the gallery to view the displayed images. Meanwhile, pictures of bodies recovered from the mud are on display near the hospital's mortuary, with relatives still hoping to identify them.

Police operate an office in an open-air courtyard to aid with body identification, having received 94 bodies, of which only 12 have been identified and returned to families. The ongoing effort to locate victims persists, both online and through a government website compiling information on survivors and the missing, as well as pleas for assistance.