Mudslide leaves hundreds dead and missing near Nepal-Tibet border

Gyirong, China. China said 261 foreign nationals from 23 countries were missing on the Tibetan side of a border crossing with Nepal after a mudslide tore through the Himalayan region, while Nepal reported at least 675 deaths on its side of the border.

Missing people and casualties

Officials from China’s Tibet Autonomous Region said at a press conference that 16 people had died in Gyirong County as of Saturday evening and 546 people were missing.

The officials said 104 Nepalese nationals, 49 Indians, 33 Latvians, 18 Americans and 15 British citizens were among those unaccounted for. Authorities in Beijing have notified foreign missions.

The figures were the first nationality breakdown released by Chinese authorities since a glacier collapse on Wednesday sent ice, rock, mud and debris down Himalayan rivers.

In Nepal, the disaster authority said 2,498 people remained missing and 7,514 had been rescued.

Flooding risk and rescue operations

Local police told Reuters that residents and rescue workers had moved to higher ground after water levels in the nearby Trishuli River rose in recent hours, highlighting the risk of further flooding as rescue efforts continued.

India is sending specialised rescue teams and heavy infrastructure to Nepal. A fourth Indian Air Force flight carrying forensic and tunnel experts was airborne, while 16 trucks carrying a 230-foot modular steel bridge had reached Nepal.

Cause and impact

Chinese state broadcaster CCTV said the disaster was caused by glacier instability under the long-term effects of global warming, describing it as a new and prominent feature of cryosphere disasters on the Tibetan plateau.

CCTV, citing Chinese scientists, reported that the mudslide from the Nepalese side took six to seven minutes to reach the Gyirong border crossing. Surveillance footage showed torrents of water and debris engulfing buildings as people attempted to flee.