Helicopter rescues have been suspended in Nepal as officials announced the death toll from devastating floods has passed the 600 mark. Nepal’s National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority said on Saturday (August 29) that 626 people were confirmed dead, while almost 2,500 people were missing. The latest figures from Chinese state media reported seven people were dead and 554 people were missing in Tibet.
British team arrives in Kathmandu
A British rapid deployment team is due to arrive in the Nepalese capital Kathmandu later on Saturday to provide support for British nationals and their families, 33 of whom are missing. Poor weather has halted helicopter rescues, hampering efforts to find survivors, Nepal Army spokesman Brigadier General Raja Ram Basnet said.
More than 30 British nationals are among hundreds of people missing and feared dead as rescue efforts continue after flooding in the Rasuwa district, which borders China’s autonomous region of Tibet. The team, consisting of specially trained crisis response staff, will work alongside the British embassy and local authorities.
Rescue efforts at hydropower plant
Mr Basnet said rescue efforts were continuing at a hydropower construction plant, where more than 100 people are believed to be trapped in a mud-filled tunnel. Rescue efforts had been hampered by fears of more flooding from a lake formed by the glacier collapse which sparked the flooding on Wednesday.
The Chinese Ministry of Water Resources said water levels had dropped by 10 metres from Thursday morning to Friday, according to state broadcaster CCTV.
UK support and missing nationals
Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband said: “The scenes from Nepal are devastating, and our thoughts remain with everyone affected. The safety and welfare of British nationals is our top priority. That is why we are deploying a Rapid Deployment Team to Nepal to provide additional support on the ground for British nationals and their families at what is an incredibly difficult time.”
The UK’s £5 million support package will support Nepal’s response efforts, including a combination of UN, Red Cross and NGO interventions. Two teenagers, a 13-year-old girl and a 14-year-old boy, are among the 33 British nationals believed to be unaccounted for.
Essex nurse Rajendra Pudasaini, president of the Non-Resident Nepali Association UK, said his relatives were “swept away” by the floods, as he launched a fundraiser to support those affected by the disaster. He told the Press Association that Nepal was witnessing an “irreplaceable loss” and the country was “paying the price for global warming”.
Bishal Nath Upreti, president of the Nepal Centre for Disaster Management, described the scene as like a “tsunami from the sky” and said villages had been “completely wiped out”. Nepalese officials said bridges have been destroyed and nearly 25 miles of roads have been damaged, which has complicated search efforts.
A number of those missing had been making a pilgrimage to the sacred Hindu site of Mount Kailash, Nepalese tour operator The Trekkers’ Society said. The operator said nine British nationals on one of its tours to the site were among those unaccounted for: four males, aged 14, 50, 50 and 54, and five women, aged 40, 46, 50, 50 and 53.
Travel logs obtained by PA show three men aged 65, 64 and 52, and seven women aged 44, 47, 51, 60, 63, 63 and 65, are also among the missing British nationals. Tour operator Kailash Journeys said it had not been able to account for seven UK nationals: five women and two men aged between 18 and 55; travelling with the company.
The FCDO said: “British nationals in Nepal should follow local authority advice and exercise caution while travelling. For consular assistance call (+44) (0)207 008 5000 or (+977) (0)14237100.”
