Nepal flood death toll rises to 626

The death toll from devastating Bhotekoshi flood and subsequent flooding downstream in Nepal has risen to 626, while 2,426 people remain unaccounted for, as security forces and emergency teams continue a massive search, rescue and relief operation across the worst-affected districts.

According to the latest update issued by the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority (NDRRMA) Saturday, 4,451 people had been rescued and 101 injured people were receiving treatment in hospitals. Twenty-seven police personnel were also among those reported missing.

The authorities have mobilised 15,224 security personnel for search, rescue and relief operations as the scale of the disaster continues to emerge.

Police had recovered 616 bodies by 6am on Saturday, including 233 in Chitwan, 158 in Nawalparasi East, 48 in Gorkha, 47 in Nawalparasi West, 45 in Dhading, 41 in Nuwakot, 31 in Tanahun and 13 in Rasuwa. The national death toll subsequently rose to 626.

Search teams are continuing to comb affected districts, working with local residents and other agencies to locate missing people and rescue those stranded by the floods.

Authorities are also moving families from high-risk areas to safer locations while clearing roads blocked by flood debris and landslides to restore access for relief operations.

The disaster began in Rasuwa and neighbouring districts in northern Nepal on Wednesday morning when a powerful surge of water and debris entered the Bhotekoshi and Trishuli river systems.

Homes, bridges, roads and other infrastructure were swept away, leaving communities and travellers cut off in several areas.

The crisis has been particularly severe along the Trishuli corridor, where hundreds of hydropower workers are believed to be trapped in tunnels and underground powerhouses.

Three days after the disaster, rescue teams are still struggling to reach several project sites. Roads and bridges have been destroyed, tunnel entrances buried and, in some cases, authorities are uncertain about the precise locations of workers.

A video circulating widely on social media and in Nepali media showed Nepali Army soldiers working through thick mud inside a tunnel to rescue a worker trapped at the 216-megawatt Upper Trishuli-1 hydropower project.

One soldier was seen pulling the worker while another pushed him from behind.

The Army has so far rescued 254 people from Upper Trishuli-1 and another 18 from the 20MW Langtang Khola Hydropower project. But hundreds remain unaccounted for.

The Independent Power Producers’ Association, Nepal (IPPAN), said 934 people linked to 11 hydropower projects, including projects under construction, remained unaccounted for.

The exact number of people trapped at individual sites remained unclear because many facilities had been cut off by the flood.

At the 22.1MW Chilime Hydropower project, eight people, including employees, remain out of contact. Six are believed to be inside a tunnel.

“We have not been able to carry out a rescue.

The tunnel is filled with mud, and it is impossible to enter,” said Baburaj Maharjan, executive director of Chilime Hydropower Company.

He said the company was seeking to mobilise a rock-climbing rescue team.

At Rasuwagadhi Hydropower Company, 49 employees remain out of contact.
“There were 56 or 57 people at the dam site and powerhouse, and we have not been able to contact any of them,” said information officer Narayan Nath Neupane.

He said three to six people could be inside the six or seven-storey underground powerhouse and expressed hope that they remained safe if oxygen pipes had not been blocked.

The Ministry of Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation said 350 people, including hydropower workers and residents, had been rescued from various projects by Friday.

The ministry also said it had information that more than 100 people were still trapped inside tunnels and that Nepali Army teams were continuing rescue operations.

“Preliminary information suggests that more than 1,000 employees working at power projects in the affected area are currently out of contact,” the ministry said in a statement, adding that it was working with project managers, IPPAN and the Nepal Electricity Authority to update information on the missing workers.

The Nepal Electricity Authority said more than 200 people at several hydropower projects remained unaccounted for.

Dirgahyu Kumar Shrestha, acting managing director of the NEA, said 15 to 20 people were uncontactable at Chilime, more than 100 at Rasuwagadhi, 40 to 45 at the Upper Trishuli-3A powerhouse and 20 to 25 at Upper Trishuli-3B.

“Because of the flood, we cannot even determine where some of the powerhouses and tunnels are,” he said.

Meanwhile, Nepal’s Foreign Minister Shisir Khanal has rejected reports that Kathmandu had refused international rescue assistance.

Speaking at a news conference at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Saturday, Khanal said decisions regarding the deployment of foreign personnel and equipment were being taken on the recommendations of Nepali security agencies leading operations on the ground.

He said Nepal’s mountainous terrain, narrow gorges and unpredictable weather had made rescue operations particularly difficult. Major roads and around 40 bridges have been destroyed, leaving helicopters as the main means of reaching many isolated areas.

Khanal said Nepal was seeking foreign assistance according to specific operational requirements identified by its own security agencies.

A specialised Indian tunnel rescue team has already arrived, while two Chinese search-and-rescue teams are preparing to deploy, he said.

Nepal is also seeking emergency refrigeration equipment from foreign governments and international organisations to preserve unidentified bodies recovered from the disaster.