Nepal flood death toll reaches 939

KATHMANDU, AUG 31 (PTI): The death toll from the devastating flash floods in Nepal rose to 939 on Monday, with bodies continuing to be recovered, while around 4,000 people are still missing, authorities said.
More than 10,000 people have been rescued so far, as search teams struggle to reach those still stranded amid intermittent rain, swollen rivers and damaged roads and bridges.
The flash floods, triggered by a collapse or avalanche of ice and rock near the Nepal-Tibet border, devastated towns and villages in northern and central Nepal on August 26.
The Bhotekoshi River, which flows south from the Himalayan border region, carried the floodwaters downstream, sweeping away homes, vehicles, roads and bridges and damaging hydropower projects.
The disaster also killed 16 people on the Chinese side, while nearly 550 people remain missing in Tibet, according to Chinese media reports.
Rescue teams are trying to trace 639 workers and employees in various hydropower project sites in Nepal’s flood-hit areas, of which many are believed to be trapped in tunnels, authorities said on Monday.
A controlled blast was carried out in one of the sites as rescuers struggled to access a blocked tunnel. Expert teams from India and China are assisting the rescuers in these operations.
Kathmandu has sought additional international support, including specialised equipment and technical assistance for tunnel rescue and forensic work.
Nepal’s foreign ministry spokesperson Lok Bahadur Chhetri said in a press briefing on Monday that the country has sought essential non-food items and services such as freezers, DNA testing kits and LiDAR from the US, relief-specific items like DVI from Singapore, and belly bridges and high-capacity drones from China and Singapore.
So far, Nepal has received airtight bags for the management of bodies, while more are also being delivered.