Nepal observes day of mourning for more than 1,300 flood victims

Nepal is observing a day of mourning for more than 1,300 people killed in a devastating flood on the Bhote Kosi River in Rasuwa district.

National flags have been lowered at government buildings and Nepalese diplomatic missions abroad. Worshippers are visiting temples and praying for the rescue of relatives.

The disaster left 32,000 families without homes and destroyed about 7,500 houses. It also severely disrupted vital infrastructure in central Nepal. Nearly 5,000 people, including 589 foreigners, remain missing, while the damage is estimated at $2.56 billion.

The flood struck on the morning of August 26 after an ice-and-rock avalanche triggered a sharp rise in the Bhote Kosi River. It destroyed settlements, roads and hydropower facilities. A mudslide also swept away a border checkpoint in Gyirung county, in China's Tibet Autonomous Region. Kyrgyzstan's Foreign Ministry said preliminary Chinese information indicated that no Kyrgyz citizens were among the dead or missing in Tibet and Nepal.