At least 33 British nationals are among 403 people missing after flash floods and mudslides struck the Nepal-Tibet border region, with the death toll currently at 157 and expected to rise as rescue operations continue.
The Nepal Tourist Board said on Wednesday that the number of missing people had risen from 384 to 403, including 341 foreign nationals. Among the missing are 47 Americans, 34 Australians, 24 Canadians and 113 Indian nationals, with two people from Ireland also unaccounted for. The youngest British citizen reported missing is 13 years old, and authorities have not yet released any names of the missing or dead.
Glacial collapse triggers catastrophic flooding
The United States Geological Survey (USGS) said a magnitude 5.2 seismic event occurred near the Nepal-China border on Wednesday at 8.37am local time, but determined that the event was actually a glacial collapse and debris flow rather than an earthquake.
In its analysis, the USGS said: "This event was initially reported as a magnitude 4.4 earthquake. Additional analysis of nearby seismic stations, long period seismic waves, and satellite imagery led to the determination that the seismic event was instead a glacial collapse and debris flow, and that no earthquake had occurred." The agency added that a "glacial collapse and debris flow" caused "subsequent catastrophic impacts downstream".
Villages razed and residents swept away
Entire villages in the mountainous border region were razed as mudslides overwhelmed riverbanks and triggered flooding across populated areas. Houses have been buried as rescuers race against the clock to save those who may be trapped but still alive.
Videos posted on social media showed huge flood waters surging through valleys as people screamed in terror, with bridges being washed away. Other videos showed people desperately fleeing uphill to escape the surging muddy flood waters.
Villager Kalpana Malla, from Nepal's Nuwakot district, told the BBC: "My family members were swept away by the flood in front of my eyes." Ms Malla said her father, mother, sister and her sister's children were all swept away by the floods. She added: "They could not escape the flood, there was no chance at all. This flood took everything, but my son and I climbed the rooftop of a house and survived, but couldn't explain how."
Tourists and guides among the missing
The Nepal-Tibet border region is a popular tourism destination, and Nepali officials have confirmed that dozens of UK citizens have been declared missing and are presumed dead. Authorities confirmed that a large number of Indian nationals were in the region to undertake a pilgrimage to Mount Kailash in Tibet, a sacred Hindu site, when disaster struck.
Kumar Adhikari, the manager of Alpine Eco Trek, told the Press Association: "I feel so sad. We are just thinking about what to do next. We are in pain at the moment, deep pain." The firm, which offers guided tours and expeditions in Nepal, confirmed four of its Nepalese tour guides – aged 38, 35, 45 and 29 – are missing as well.
Mr Adhikari said the tour group, who were on a nine-day tour to Mount Kailash, were crossing into Tibet from Nepal when they became trapped at the border as the flash floods struck. He said he was in contact with his tour guides until 8.40am when their phones went offline, at which point the group would have been inside Tibet's immigration office. "We were hoping that inside it was safe," he said. "But later the video came from China's government which (showed) even Tibet's side was hit by the flood."
Mayor of Bidur Rajan Shrestha told The Times that he had "never seen such a massive flood in my life" and estimated that about 400 people may have been swept away. He added: "And it came so fast. We could not evacuate all the people from the main town."
Prime Minister Andy Burnham said on Wednesday that the Government will do "everything we can" to support British nationals in Nepal following the floods. The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office said it was "deeply saddened by the loss of life and devastation caused by the floods in Nepal". It added: "British nationals in Nepal should follow local authority advice and exercise caution while travelling."
