At least eight people have died and 384 tourists, including some Brits, are missing after sudden flash flooding along the Bhotekoshi River in Nepal. The floods were triggered by an avalanche of ice and rock, causing massive damage to villages and infrastructure.
Tourists missing after floods
Officials reported 384 tourists missing, including 291 from countries such as India, the United States, the United Kingdom and Malaysia. The flooding has obliterated several villages, roads and hydropower projects, according to authorities.
Warnings have been issued to residents across several districts, urging them to stay away from the banks of the Bhotekoshi, Trishuli and Narayani rivers.
Glacier avalanche blamed for surge
Climate experts at the Kathmandu-based International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development said an avalanche from a glacier likely caused Wednesday's flash flood. The Lhende Khola River, a tributary of the Bhotekoshi River, witnessed maximum flooding on that day.
"The Lhende Khola has flooded twice in fourteen months, this time triggered by an ice rock avalanche from a glacier on the Nepal side that blocked the river and released a sudden surge downstream," said Saswata Sanyal, a disaster risk reduction specialist at the climate research group.
"In a warming Himalaya, early warning is the first line of adaptation," he added.
