Nepal Flash Flood Death Toll Reaches 162 as Hundreds Remain Missing

At least 162 people have died and hundreds remain missing after a devastating flash flood swept through Nepal’s Rasuwa and Nuwakot districts on Wednesday, severely damaging settlements, hydropower facilities and infrastructure along the Kathmandu-Kerung trade corridor. Authorities said an ice-rock avalanche about 20 kilometres northeast of the Rasuwa-Rasuwagadhi border crossing dammed the Lhende River, causing debris and floodwaters to surge into the Bhotekoshi and Trishuli river systems. Chitwan recorded the highest number of casualties, while 28 Nepal Police officers remain missing. Forty-one injured people are receiving treatment at hospitals across the region. The disaster destroyed 19 motorable bridges and left about 40 kilometres of paved highway impassable, hampering rescue operations. The government has declared Rasuwa, Nuwakot and Dhading disaster crisis areas and mobilised security forces and helicopters for search and rescue. The Nepali Army and private helicopter operators have so far airlifted 114 people to safety. Authorities have urged residents to avoid several affected roads and remain alert along the Bhotekoshi and Trishuli riverbanks. International assistance is also being mobilised, with India and China pledging support and the World Bank indicating that up to Rs 25 billion could be mobilised in emergency assistance. Rescue teams continue to search for missing people as the scale of the devastation becomes clearer.