Nepal flash flood kills at least 95, leaves nearly 400 missing, including foreign tourists

A mid-morning flash flood unleashed by an avalanche on the Bhotekoshi river has devastated three districts in Nepal, claiming at least 95 lives and leaving nearly 400 people unaccounted for. Among the missing are security personnel and foreign tourists, highlighting the widespread impact of one of the country's most severe disasters in recent memory.

The flood's origin was an avalanche that blocked the Lhende tributary of the Bhotekoshi, near Nepal's border with China. This blockage led to a sudden surge of water, which first struck Timure, a settlement near the Rasuwagadhi border crossing. Residents, caught unaware due to the absence of rainfall, were going about their daily routines when the torrent hit. Rajendra Dhungana, chief customs officer in Rasuwa, described the event as feeling like an earthquake before witnessing a "wall of water, trailing what looked like a plume of smoke, crashing down from upstream." He recounted how the market was "gone within moments" as the wave, estimated to be nearly 100 meters high, swept through.

The scale of destruction is immense. Over 300 vehicles and trucks at the customs checkpoint were washed away. As the floodwaters surged downstream towards Syaphrubesi and beyond, they obliterated people, animals, buildings, and vital public infrastructure. A statement from the Prime Minister’s Office indicates that 391 foreigners and 44 security personnel are among the missing. The disaster also crippled essential services, destroying nine hydropower projects and an equal number of commercial bank branches. Preliminary reports confirm the loss of 19 motorable bridges and 40 kilometers of highway.

Disaster experts and security officials suggest that Wednesday's flood could rank among the deadliest in Nepal's modern history. The number of unaccounted for potentially surpasses every disaster since the 1993 floods in Sarlahi, Rautahat, and Makawanpur, which claimed 1,400 lives and remain a benchmark for catastrophic events in the country. Ravindra Nepal, ward 7 chair of Bidur Municipality in Nuwakot, reported that hundreds of houses were wiped out, with many elderly people and children still missing. Residents like Gokarna Adhikari from Dandathok Tupche described their villages as completely destroyed, with no roads or bridges left to reach safety.

“

It was the flood, rising like a wave nearly 100 metres high and sweeping through the market. Within moments, the market was gone.