- By Ajeet Kumar
- Thu, 27 Aug 2026 08:33 AM (IST)
- Source:JND
- Hundreds missing after devastating floods on Nepal-China border.
- Glacial collapse, not earthquake, caused catastrophic debris flow.
- Widespread destruction; rescue efforts continue for survivors.
Kathmandu: Rescue workers searched for hundreds of people still missing on Thursday after a wall of mud and rock collapsed into a river on the Himalayan border of Nepal and China's Tibet a day earlier, triggering catastrophic flooding that swept through mountain towns and valleys, killing scores of people.
Officials at Nepal's tourism ministry told media outlets that around 340 foreigners were among more than 400 tourists missing after the disaster, which hit a mountainous region popular with trekkers and pilgrims. Some 157 bodies had been recovered so far, Nepal police said late on Wednesday.
Devastation everywhere
Verified videos showed crushing masses of water and debris sweeping away dozens of people at the border, with authorities in both China and Nepal fearing far higher casualties and massive destruction.
(CREDIT: REUTERS)
Houses, roads and power projects were washed away in Nepal, while officials in Tibet said they feared "major casualties" after a mudslide hit a border land crossing in the county of Gyirong.
"My wife is still somewhere beneath the mud"
"It was a huge gush of mud coming straight towards us. As it got closer, it kept rising higher and higher. When I saw it enter our home, I tried to grab my wife's hand and take her to the terrace. But she was swept away by the mud," said Keshav Prasad Baral, a 68-year-old survivor, who was being treated at a small hospital.
(CREDIT: REUTERS)
"Four or five hours later, a helicopter came to rescue me. My wife is still somewhere beneath the mud. She's gone.
"Another survivor described being saved by clinging to a mango tree as he watched the house where he had been working disappear.
What led to Nepal flash floods?
Early reports from Nepali officials suggested an earthquake in the area could have caused the lower part of a glacier to collapse and trigger the floods. The US Geological Survey later said what was initially reported as a 4.4 magnitude earthquake recorded at the time of the disaster was seismic energy generated by the glacial rock and ice collapsing and the flow of debris.
Hundreds of Indian pilgrims missing
Many of the victims were on a pilgrimage to Kailash Mansarovar, a high-altitude site in Tibet that is revered by Hindus, Buddhists and others. Mount Kailash, believed by Hindus to be the abode of Lord Shiva, lies on the banks of Lake Mansarovar, also seen by various religions as sacred.
In the affected areas, houses, trees and vehicles were submerged or buried in mudslides. Helicopters hovered overhead all day in the area bringing in survivors.
An initial study of Planet Labs satellite imagery indicated that a landslide of ice and rock triggered a debris-laden flood in the Lhende River, about 20 km northeast of the Nepal-China Rasuwagadhi border crossing, Nepal's National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority said on X.
Helicopters could not land in Nepal's affected areas
Rescue helicopters could not land in Nepal's affected areas of Syapru Besi and Timure in the mountainous district of Rasuwa, with a population of about 50,000, officials said, with the river flowing above its normal course.
Television images showed collapsed homes, floating cars and a metal bridge being washed away, while witnesses told Reuters the waters engulfed entire villages.
"There is devastation everywhere we look," Tula Bahadur BK, a health worker in Rasuwa, told Reuters. "The settlements next to the river have been completely swept away. Five of my own relatives are missing.
(With inputs from Reuters)