KATHMANDU: The death toll in the devastating flash flood that struck Rasuwa on Tuesday morning has reached 11.
Previously, nine bodies had been recovered, and two more were retrieved from the lower belt of the Trishuli River, according to Central Police Spokesperson DIG Binod Ghimire.
To date, 862 people—including those trapped by the flood and those stranded due to traffic disruptions caused by the disaster—have been evacuated and escorted to safety.
Of the 11 recovered bodies, only one has been identified. Several were found in a severely maimed condition.
According to an update from Police Headquarters in Naxal, Kathmandu, 19 people are still missing. Among the three police personnel earlier reported missing, the body of Assistant Sub-Inspector (ASI) Lal Bahadur Shrestha has been recovered. The bodies are currently kept at Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital.
Over 1,300 security personnel have been mobilized for rescue efforts, and the search for the missing continues, police said.
The flash flood in the Lhende Stream along the Nepal-China border in Rasuwagadhi swept away the Miteri Bridge—a key link between the two countries—and damaged the Customs Office at Rasuwagadhi.
The road from Dhunche to Timure has been heavily damaged by the flood, which also swept away 24 containers, six trucks, and 42 electric vehicles.
According to a preliminary report from the Department of Hydrology and Meteorology, the flood was caused by the outburst of a supraglacial lake located in the upper catchment of the Lhende Stream.
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