Nepal-Tibet flash flood live updates: China halts rescue at epicentre over flood risk, state media reports; death toll at 469, say Nepali police | Nepal-Tibet flood disaster
China halts rescue at Tibet epicentre over flood risk – state media
China has paused a rescue operation due to the high risk of renewed flooding in Tibet, where hundreds remain missing after the deadly mudslide in the border region.
State broadcaster CCTV reported that a lake formed by immense piles of debris had begun overflowing towards the area that rescue teams were headed.
“So all rescue teams have been ordered to stand by in place and wait for further instructions,” it said on Friday, cited by AFP.
CCTV added that emergency teams which had earlier accessed the area “have been ordered to withdraw one kilometre”.
Key events
Helicopter rescue operations halted in Nepal as lake overflowing in Rasuwa district
Authorities in Nepal have stopped rescue operations for the next 90 minutes, an army officer said on Friday, after reports that a dammed lake in the flood-hit region began to overflow.
Helicopter rescue operations in the flood hit Rasuwa district were stopped and locals were seen rushing up the hill, according to a Reuters witness.
Interim summary
In case you’re just joining us, here’s a snapshot of the latest in the Nepal-Tibet calamity.
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Chinese authorities warned that an artificial lake formed after a catastrophic flash flood hit the China-Nepal border on Wednesday faces a “high risk of breaching and sending flood waters downstream”, state media reported.
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Nepal also warned of new flooding risks, with the country’s disaster authority saying water levels were rising in a lake formed by debris clogging a flooded site and that it was at risk of bursting its banks.
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Rescue teams and military helicopters continue their search for hundreds of missing people along the mountainous border. Wednesday’s flash flooding after a glacial collapse killed at least 469 people and has left more than 1,500 missing.
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Efforts to locate those unaccounted for have been complicated by the destruction of dozens of bridges and 40km (25 miles) of roads. The missing include hundreds of tourists from India, the US, Britain, Australia and Canada.
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The Red Cross said about 93,000 people might have been affected and launched an emergency appeal for $31m for disaster relief.
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China paused a rescue operation at the epicentre of the Tibet disaster due to the high risk of renewed flooding in Tibet. State broadcaster CCTV reported that a lake formed by immense piles of debris had begun overflowing towards the area that rescue teams were headed.
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Nepali army helicopter rescue teams are working to rescue about 100 people trapped inside a tunnel at the Trishuli 3A hydropower project swamped by Wednesday’s flash flood, an army spokesperson said.
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UN humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher said he ordered the release of $2m from the UN’s central emergency response fund to help with medical care, shelter and water.
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Rescuers found bodies in Nepal’s Chitwan district, hundreds of kilometres downstream from the hardest-hit areas.
The overall death toll in Nepal has risen to 469 people, with more than 1,300 missing, and China has paused rescue work at the epicentre of the Tibet flooding amid fears that an artificial lake formed at the site was at risk of bursting.
The international community, meanwhile, is scrambling to get aid into flood-stricken parts of Nepal and Tibet but search and rescue efforts are being complicated by the destruction.
There’s more in our new full report here:
The scale of the destruction from the flooding in Nepal’s northern border region was becoming clearer on Friday, with roads, bridges and hydropower infrastructure destroyed and survivors describing scenes of extraordinary devastation.
Amid the rescue attempt unfolding at the Trishuli 3A hydropower project, workers rescued from other dam projects along the Trishuli valley described a disaster that unfolded with terrifying speed.
“There were at least 400 workers at the site,” Dev Shrestha, who was airlifted from the site where he was working, said after his rescue.
More people died than were rescued.
Worker Buddha Tamang said he survived only because he was inside a tunnel at the dam where he worked when the flood struck – but he had managed to get out and reach help, Agence France-Presse reports.
“I survived as I was in the tunnel,” said Tamang, who was airlifted on Thursday after being marooned for more than 24 hours.
The senior officers working on the other side, they were all swept away.
Another worker, Arjun Kumar Tamang, spoke of “massive damage” at the hydropower site where he had been.
I don’t know how many people died but the force of the water swept everything away.
More now on the Nepali army’s rescue operation to save about 100 people trapped in a tunnel at a hydropower project swamped by Wednesday’s flooding.
“Two helicopters have been dispatched but it is challenging because it is tough to even locate the entry points of the tunnel,” army spokesperson Raja Ram Basnet told AFP.
Relief efforts are also under way to provide the rescued people what they need.
The prime minister’s office said the army had been working in tough conditions.
“A Nepali army team has successfully rescued 350 workers and locals who were trapped in the tunnel a while ago facing extremely risky and challenging conditions amid adverse weather and rapid floodwaters,” the statement read.
The army is still working to safely evacuate more than 100 people trapped in the same tunnel.
Here are some of the latest images coming in amid the Nepal-Tibet border devastation as rescuers continue to search for more than 1,300 people missing, including hundreds of tourists and pilgrims.
China halts rescue at Tibet epicentre over flood risk – state media
China has paused a rescue operation due to the high risk of renewed flooding in Tibet, where hundreds remain missing after the deadly mudslide in the border region.
State broadcaster CCTV reported that a lake formed by immense piles of debris had begun overflowing towards the area that rescue teams were headed.
“So all rescue teams have been ordered to stand by in place and wait for further instructions,” it said on Friday, cited by AFP.
CCTV added that emergency teams which had earlier accessed the area “have been ordered to withdraw one kilometre”.
China has halted the rescue at the epicentre of the Tibet disaster over flood risk, state media is reportedly saying.
Nepal army trying to rescue 100 trapped in hydropower tunnel
Nepali army helicopter rescue teams are working to rescue about 100 people trapped inside a tunnel at a hydropower project swamped by Wednesday’s flash flood.
“Our focus is in search and rescue of people … some people are trapped in the tunnel of Trishuli 3A hydropower project,” Nepal army spokesperson Raja Ram Basnet told Agence France-Presse.
The prime minister’s office said in a statement on Friday that 350 people had been rescued from the area but 100 more were trapped.
The Nepalese army says it is working to rescue 100 people trapped in a hydropower tunnel after the flooding.
We’ll bring you more on this soon.
The family of two Sydney boys who went missing with their parents in Nepal say they remain hopeful they will be found safe.
The four were taking part in a pilgrimage when the flood hit and are among 39 Australians identified as missing in the region.
Nino Bucci and Henry Belot report that the mother’s sister Vaishnavi said she had lost contact with the family shortly after breakfast on the morning of the flood.
They planned to head towards an immigration checkpoint on the Tibet-Nepal border soon after, as part of the group of 15 Australians trekking as part of a tour.
Vaishnavi told the Guardian:
Just like everyone else that’s part of that group, we’re really worried, but hopeful. Hopeful that they’re safe and just waiting to be rescued.
It’s a very difficult time for our whole family … I just want to make people aware that they’re there, and we’re waiting, and we just want them to return.
The full report is here:
Nepal death toll rises to 469, police say
Nepal police have said that the death toll from Wednesday’s flash flood now stands at 469.
It’s a jump of 80 since the last reported update, and comes as search teams continue recovery efforts across the disaster-struck area. More than 1,300 remain missing, including hundreds of tourists from India, the US, Britain, Australia and Canada.
Efforts to locate those unaccounted for have been complicated by the destruction of dozens of bridges and 40km (25 miles) of roads in the mountainous region, which is popular with trekkers and pilgrims.
Rescuers have evacuated 555 stranded tourists from Tibet, Chinese state media reported on Friday.
State broadcaster CCTV said 499 local residents, as well as 555 tourists, had been transported out of the disaster zone as of Friday morning.
It did not specify the tourists’ nationalities.
Summary: river at risk of flooding again amid race to find survivors
Chinese authorities have warned that an artificial lake formed after a catastrophic flash flood hit the China-Nepal border on Wednesday faces a “high risk of breaching and sending flood waters downstream”, according to state media.
“According to forecasts, inflows into the lake could reach about 3 million cubic meters over the next three days amid continued rainfall, increasing the risk of a breach that could send flood waters downstream and potentially cause further damage in areas including Gyirong Port and elsewhere downstream”, state news agency Xinhua reported late on Thursday.
Nepal has also warned of new flooding risks, with the country’s disaster authority saying water levels were rising in a lake formed by debris clogging a flooded site and that it was at risk of bursting its banks. It did not name the specific site.
It comes as rescue teams and military helicopters continue their search for hundreds of missing people along the mountainous border, with the Red Cross saying about 93,000 people might have been affected. The aid agency launched an emergency appeal for $31m to respond to the disaster.
Also today:
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Rescue teams and military helicopters are searching for hundreds of missing people along the mountainous Nepal-Tibet border after the huge torrent of water and mud swept through communities following a glacier collapse on Wednesday.
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More than 390 people were killed, authorities in Nepal and China said, and more than 1,400 were missing, including hundreds of foreign citizens and pilgrims.
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More than 500 foreign citizens were among 826 people missing in Nepal, police and tourism officials said. Among those unaccounted for were 177 from India, 90 from the US, 39 from Australia, 33 from Britain and 25 from Canada.
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Chinese state media said at least 558 were missing on the Tibet side of the border, of whom at least 260 were foreign nationals.
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UN humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher said he ordered the release of $2m from the UN’s central emergency response fund to help with medical care, shelter and water.
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US president Donald Trump said the flooding was terrible to see, describing how “strong, well-built buildings were wiped out like they were toothpicks”.
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Nepalese officials said dozens of bridges were destroyed and nearly 40km of roads damaged, complicating search efforts.
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The Nepalese army had rescued more than 100 people by helicopter, an army spokesperson said. Army teams also evacuated people trapped inside facilities linked to the Trishuli hydropower project, he said. Dozens of injured people were transported to Kathmandu for medical care.
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Rescuers found bodies in Nepal’s Chitwan district, hundreds of kilometres downstream from the hardest-hit areas.
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The Nepal Red Cross Society said the agency has shifted its focus from rescue to large-scale relief operations in the flood-hit districts.
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China’s premier, Li Qiang, arrived in Gyirong on Thursday to direct rescue efforts, alongside 500 military and paramilitary personnel.
