China confirms 50 tonnes of aid and rescue equipment sent to Nepal after floods

China has sent 50 tonnes of emergency supplies and two teams of tunnel-rescue specialists to Nepal after last week's devastating floods affected both sides of the border.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun said the first shipment had already arrived in Kathmandu. China also provided emergency financial assistance, although he did not disclose the amount. Beijing shared satellite images, hydrological data and early-warning information about a natural dam formed upstream from the disaster area.

The Chinese rescue teams moved to affected areas to support search operations. Part of the search has focused on hydroelectric complexes, where Nepalese authorities reported that 933 workers were trapped or unaccounted for.

Guo said Nepalese authorities had reported that nearly 100 Chinese citizens were missing in the disaster zone. He did not clarify whether they were among the workers trapped or missing at the hydroelectric facilities. By midday Sunday, all Chinese citizens in affected areas with whom contact had been established had been evacuated and were safe.

Nepalese authorities raised the country's death toll to 903 and the number of missing people to 4,247 on Monday. The latest separate figures from Nepal and China amounted to 919 deaths and 4,793 people unaccounted for on both sides of the border.

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The first batch of 50 tonnes of relief supplies has already arrived in Kathmandu.