&imwidth=800&imheight=600&format=webp&quality=medium "Nepal Tibet LIVE updates: Death toll rises to 750; rescuers race to save trapped over 100 workers in hydropower tunnels")
Nepal Tibet LIVE updates: Nepal’s death toll from this week’s devastating floods has risen to 734, the country’s disaster authority said Sunday, as rescue teams continue searching for thousands of people missing after a massive surge of water, ice and debris tore through Himalayan communities. China earlier reported 16 deaths, bringing the total death toll in the disaster to 750. Across Nepal and Tibet, more than 3,000 people remain unaccounted for.
The disaster struck Wednesday along the China-Nepal border after a glacial collapse sent a powerful torrent through valleys, sweeping away settlements, bridges and roads. The US Geological Survey has attributed the flooding to a glacial collapse which sent a wall of water and debris downstream.
Rescue teams race to trapped workers
In Nepal, rescuers are focusing on hydropower project tunnels where more than 100 workers may still be alive and trapped. At the Trishuli 3A site, the Nepali Army successfully inserted a pipe into a tunnel and began sending air through the narrow opening, Home Minister Sudan Gurung said. Heavy rain and rising river levels, however, have complicated the operation.
Nepal’s disaster authority lists 933 hydropower workers among the missing, along with 517 foreigners, including trekkers and pilgrims travelling towards Mount Kailash.
The Isha Foundation said 80 members were on a pilgrimage in the region. It said there were no encouraging indications of survivors at the immigration office area.
International aid pours in
The scale of the destruction has triggered a major international relief effort. The United States and Canada have each pledged $3.6 million, while Britain has offered $6.8 million. The UN has released $2.5 million in emergency funding.
Nepal’s Foreign Minister Shisir Khanal warned that rebuilding could cost “billions of dollars” and called for specialised equipment, including heavy-lift drones and technology to locate people trapped underground.
Fresh flood threat
The disaster has also raised fears of further flooding from lakes formed by the deluge.
In Tibet, rescue operations were temporarily halted around Gyirong over concerns that a newly formed lake could overflow. Chinese state broadcaster CCTV later said the lake was “discharging naturally” and had been “essentially drained”.
Meanwhile, Indian officials said seven bodies believed to be flood victims had been recovered from rivers flowing from Nepal.
At an army base in the Nepali town of Bidur, a key rescue hub, relatives crowded around lists of rescued people pasted on a wall.
"I have come here looking for my son," said Kalka Sharda, scanning the list in desperation. "He was a labourer at the hydropower plant, but I can't find his name, and the authorities are not saying anything."
Devastating floods near the border with China killed at least 734 people in Nepal and 2,498 remain missing, its disaster authority said Sunday, as rescue efforts entered a fifth day.
Chinese state media had earlier confirmed 16 dead in Tibet and 546 people missing following Wednesday's disaster.
That takes the overall toll to 750 dead and 3,044 missing.
Nepali rescuers seeking to reach hydropower workers believed trapped in tunnels swamped by flood debris were hampered Sunday by heavy overnight rain and rising river waters.
Nepal's government says more than 100 workers may still be alive and trapped inside multiple tunnels at hydropower projects, with key rescue efforts focused on the Trishuli 3A and 3B sites.
Nepal warned Sunday of rising flood waters and urged rescue teams to exercise caution, as efforts to retrieve victims from areas devastated by a deadly torrent of icy debris and water entered a fifth day.
"We have received information that the flood flow in the Bhotekoshi River in Rasuwa has increased further," the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority (NDRRMA)said in a warning issued at 7:20 am (0135 GMT).
"Therefore, all personnel engaged in search, rescue, and relief operations, those in riverside areas, and everyone else in affected areas including Rasuwa, Nuwakot, Dhading, and Chitwan are requested to exercise caution."
China said the death toll from a mudslide that struck Tibet rose to 16 and 546 people were still missing, state media reported Sunday, citing local officials.
A devastating, tsunami-like wall of water tore through the border region between Nepal and Tibet this week, sweeping away entire villages.
Figures from Nepal and from Chinese authorities in charge of Tibet put the total number of missing close to 3,000, with 691 bodies recovered.
The United States said Saturday it was providing $3.6 million in humanitarian aid to Nepal following catastrophic flooding that killed hundreds and left close to 3,000 missing.
"The United States is standing with the people of Nepal by providing more than $3.6 million worth of life-saving humanitarian assistance, including up to three months of emergency food assistance to up to 10,000 flood-affected households," the State Department said in a post on X.
Nepali army rescuers broke through to a hydropower tunnel on Saturday and began pumping air and sending a camera inside, raising hopes of reaching workers trapped since devastating floods struck the site three days earlier.
Nepal's government says more than 100 workers may still be alive and trapped inside tunnels at hydropower projects, with rescue efforts focused on the Trishuli 3A and 3B sites.
Those trapped are among 933 hydropower workers missing since a wall of mud and debris swept down on Wednesday morning, according to the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority.
