Flood-hit districts remain cut off from national road network

Several districts that lost road connections after floods swept away roads and bridges following continuous rainfall on September 24 and 25 remain cut off from Nepal’s national road network.

In Lamjung, repairs have restored the road to Chame in Manang, according to Satish Subedi, chief of the Dumre-Besisahar-Chame Road Project Office in Lamjung. “The road has been reopened up to Chame,” Subedi said. “Traffic has started moving along sections damaged by the floods after temporary tracks were opened.”

The road remains blocked beyond Chame. Vehicles previously travelled as far as Khangsar, about 3 km above Chame, but that section is currently inaccessible because a concrete bridge over the Marsyangdi river has been submerged.

Subedi said the road to Chame should remain passable during Dashain as long as there is no further rainfall triggering landslides. “There should be no problem travelling to Chame unless it rains and causes landslides along the way,” he said. “Beyond Chame, we cannot say yet.”

Many people travel to Manang for trekking during the Dashain holidays.

The road connecting Myagdi and Mustang, as well as the road linking Baglung and Parbat, has yet to be fully repaired. The Department of Roads said it would take some more time to restore direct road connections between the districts.

Work is underway to reopen the Myagdi-Mustang road, said Tejaswi Sharma, chief of the Kaligandaki Corridor (Beni-Jomsom-Korala) Road Project Office in Jomsom. “We are working to reopen the road by Monday,” Sharma said. “The concrete bridge at Pokharebagar-Gharkhola in Mustang was swept away, while the road was washed out at the Kuinetto section in Baisari on the Myagdi side. We are currently working on these sections.”

He said crews were working to reopen the road as quickly as possible.

“Myagdi and Mustang remain cut off by road,” Sharma said. “We are clearing landslides and repairing the road, and based on the current situation, we expect it to reopen by Monday.”

The closure has left vehicles arriving from China, along with clothing and consumer goods, stranded at the Korala border crossing. Automobile businesses have also been affected during the festival season.

The road connection between Parbat and Baglung has also been disrupted after floodwaters washed away the approach road to the bridge over the Kaligandaki river at Maldhunga.

As a result, the two districts do not currently have a direct road link, disrupting travel to and from Baglung district headquarters.

Krishnaraj Adhikari, chief of the Pokhara Division Road Office, said work was underway to reconnect Parbat and Baglung before Dashain. “Floods damaged several sections of the road from Kaski through Parbat to different parts of Myagdi,” he said. “We first focused on reopening the roads. We are now working to allow vehicles to cross the Maldhunga bridge linking Parbat and Baglung.”

Engineers have had to divert the Kaligandaki river channel to repair the section where the approach road was washed away. “We diverted the river channel by around 22 metres,” Adhikari said. “It was difficult for workers to operate in the area. The river was about 8 metres deep on the side where the approach road was washed away. We started constructing a retaining wall on Monday.”

Materials, including soil and sand, are now being brought to the site, he said. The Nepal Army and Armed Police Force have been assisting with the work. “We will get vehicles running across the bridge before Dashain, no matter what,” Adhikari said. “The flood had eroded the approach road by up to 24 metres.”

Nuwakot and Rasuwa, meanwhile, have remained without a direct road connection for more than a month following floods on August 26.

The two districts were cut off after a bridge over the Falakhu river on the Nuwakot-Rasuwa road was destroyed. A Bailey bridge is now being installed at the site, said Krishnanath Ojha, chief of the Galchhi-Trishuli-Mailung-Syaphrubesi-Rasuwagadhi Road Project Office in Bidur.

“We will install the Bailey bridge over the Falakhu river within five days at most,” Ojha said. “The road has now been reopened up to Syabrubesi, and we are assessing sites for a Bailey bridge over the Bhotekoshi river. As soon as the Bailey bridge is installed at Falakhu, we will begin work on the Syabrubesi side.”

The Rasuwagadhi border crossing with China remains shut after floods swept away roads, bridges and settlements. Poor road access has also made it difficult to reach several villages in Rasuwa.

Infrastructure Development Minister Sunil Lamsal said repairs and maintenance of roads had begun with the festival season in mind. Work has already started on the Nagdhunga-Muglin road section, he said.