Kathmandu, Nepal, August 31 (ANI): The death toll from the devastating flash floods that have swept across Nepal has risen to 903, while 4,247 people remain missing, according to the latest data released Monday by Nepal’s National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority (NDRRMA).
The disaster has caused unprecedented destruction across several districts, sweeping away homes, schools, markets, roads and hydropower facilities. Rescue and relief operations are continuing on a massive scale, with 10,451 people rescued so far.
According to the latest figures, the highest number of bodies has been recovered in Chitwan, where 272 casualties, including unidentified human remains, have been reported. Nawalparasi East has recorded 207 deaths, followed by Nawalparasi West with 151, Nuwakot with 95, Gorkha with 62, Dhading with 55, Tanahun with 37, and Rasuwa with 24.
The number of missing persons remains alarmingly high. Authorities said the missing include 25 Nepal Police personnel, 45 Nepal Army personnel, 13 Armed Police Force personnel, 15 Customs Office personnel and three Immigration Office personnel.
District Emergency Operations Centre data showed that 1,548 people are missing in Nuwakot and 865 in Rasuwa. Another 933 people associated with hydropower projects remain unaccounted for, while 65 people are missing from Makwanpur. The number of missing foreign nationals has been placed at 592.
Teacher Saves More Than 1,600 Students
Amid the widespread devastation, stories of courage and survival have emerged from the disaster-hit areas.
In Trishuli, more than 1,600 students were evacuated to safety after rapidly rising floodwaters threatened their school. A teacher reportedly acted swiftly, risking his own life to help evacuate the children in what residents described as a race against time.
Although all the students were safely evacuated, the raging floodwaters later engulfed and swept away the school building.
Local resident Surendar Kumar described the destruction, saying that a three-storey school building, a Ram temple and a busy market that once stood in the area had been wiped out.
The devastation was so extensive that there was virtually no trace of the school left, with the surrounding area buried under rubble and mud. Residents also reported a high number of casualties in the area, although authorities have yet to determine the exact toll.
India Assists in Tunnel Rescue Operations
A specialised Tunnel Search and Rescue team from India has joined Nepalese authorities in search operations at hydropower tunnel sites in the Chilime and Langtang areas.
The Indian team is working in coordination with the Nepal Army to locate and rescue people trapped or missing in flood-affected hydropower facilities.
Indian Ambassador to Nepal Naveen Srivastava said the specialised rescue team would continue its operations in close coordination with Nepalese authorities.
On August 30, authorities rescued 15 people from a hydropower site, including five Chinese and seven Indian nationals.
Massive Rescue Operation Underway
Nepal’s military and security agencies have launched one of the country’s largest disaster-response operations.
A total of 411 flights have been conducted as part of rescue and relief efforts, including seven flights on Monday. The Nepal Army has carried out aerial rescues involving 252 foreign nationals and 3,344 Nepali citizens.
Nearly 20,000 security personnel have been deployed across the affected regions. Ground forces have carried out 8,730 rescues, while aircrews have conducted hundreds of helicopter flights, airlifting thousands of people to safety.
Helicopter crews have also rescued hundreds of people directly from flooded hydropower facilities, including individuals trapped inside tunnels.
Relief supplies, including food and other essential materials, are being transported to affected communities by trucks, smaller vehicles and helicopters as authorities struggle to reach isolated areas.
Volunteers Mobilize to Clear Devighat
Meanwhile, more than 150 volunteers from Likhu Rural Municipality in Nuwakot district have headed to the devastated Devighat area to assist in rescue and cleanup operations.
The volunteers were accompanied by heavy equipment, including tipper trucks and two JCB machines, to clear massive amounts of debris and reopen blocked access routes.
Likhu Rural Municipality Mayor Dhruba Shrestha said the team would remain in the affected area until the cleanup work was completed.
“We will return only after clearing up the mess and resolving the situation there,” Shrestha said, adding that the municipality would provide all possible assistance to flood victims.
The mayor said 20 people from the municipality were missing, while one body had been recovered.
Residents and volunteers described scenes of almost total destruction in areas including Devighat, Trishuli, Betrawati, Jhole and Timure, where homes, markets and riverside settlements were swept away.
One volunteer said the scale of destruction was unlike anything he had witnessed in his lifetime, describing entire communities as reduced to wastelands.
Rescue workers fear that additional victims and livestock may still be buried beneath the enormous piles of debris.
Volunteers are also providing food, drinking water and temporary shelter to survivors while helping clear roads to allow rescue teams to reach isolated communities and recover bodies.
As Nepal continues to battle the aftermath of one of its deadliest flood disasters, authorities face the daunting task of locating thousands of missing people, identifying recovered bodies, restoring access to devastated communities and providing relief to countless survivors left without homes or basic necessities. (ANI)
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