The death toll from flash floods in central Nepal climbed to 579 on Friday as more bodies were recovered after search and rescue operations resumed at full pace, following a brief slowdown amid fears of fresh flooding due to rising water levels in the Bhotekoshi River area.
The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority (NDRRMA) said rising water levels at the site of a devastating flash flood earlier this week increased the risk of another flood in the area.
"The water level mixed with mud has increased at the same place where the flash flood occurred on Wednesday, and there is a risk of more flooding in the area," the NDRRMA said.
The warning came after a massive flash flood swept through Rasuwa and other parts of central Nepal on Wednesday, killing hundreds and causing widespread damage to settlements, roads, bridges and hydropower infrastructure.
The NDRRMA urged people involved in search and rescue operations, as well as those staying in the Bhotekoshi and Trishuli areas for various reasons, to remain highly alert and immediately move to safer places if they face any risk.
Nepal Police on Friday said 579 bodies were recovered from eight districts of the Himalayan nation, with thousands still missing.
According to the police, 233 dead bodies have been recovered from Chitwan district, 154 from Nawalparasi East, 46 from Gorkha and 40 from Dhading.
Similarly, 37 dead bodies were recovered from Nuwakot, 30 from Tanahu, 27 from Nawalparasi West, and 12 from Rasuwa.
Five people have been killed in Gyirong County in the Tibet Autonomous Region, according to Chinese authorities.
At least 1924 people, including 86 security personnel, 517 foreign tourists and 127 Nepali travellers, have been missing since Wednesday morning when the flash floods hit Rasuwa and adjoining districts of Nepal.
So far, 1,545 injured and stranded people have been rescued from various affected regions. Among them, 84 are currently undergoing treatment in various hospitals in Kathmandu, where families are desperately searching for their loved ones.
So far, 4451 people have been rescued from different affected areas. These include 129 foreign nationals, including 85 Indians, and 191 people trapped in tunnels of various hydropower projects. Altogether, 101 injured people are undergoing treatment in various hospitals in Kathmandu.
"Two helicopters have been dispatched but it is challenging because it is tough to even locate the entry points of the tunnel," army spokesman Raja Ram Basnet told AFP.
Search and rescue operations continued for the third day of the tragic incident with the mobilisation of 7,451 security personnel, including 2,391 Nepal Army personnel, the police statement said.
Helicopters have been used to reach isolated areas and evacuate survivors, while ground teams continue searching riverbanks and downstream settlements, The Kathmandu Post newspaper reported.
Morgues in hospitals in Nepal in several areas are running out of space as more bodies swept away by the floods downstream are being recovered.
Bodies recovered from Rasuwa and Nuwakot have been found as far downstream as Chitwan, Tanahun, Nawalparasi, Gorkha and other districts, with morgues in several areas running out of space.
Meanwhile, the Nepal government has decided to halt all examinations from August 29, given the situation that developed following the devastating natural disaster.
Nepal Prime Minister Balendra Shah and members of his cabinet have decided in a cabinet meeting to donate a month's salary to the disaster relief fund.
The cabinet also directed the finance ministry to prepare a relief, concessional financing and rehabilitation package for individuals and businesses affected by flash floods.
In another development, Nepal has denied refusing assistance from friendly countries and the international community, saying it wants to "prioritise" maximum deployment of its own security forces, which are familiar with local environmental conditions and rugged terrain.
Speaking to the National News Agency (RSS), Nepal foreign minister Shisir Khanal said that "International assistance was not rejected but that the rescue strategy was decided based on national capacity, immediate need and Nepal's unique geographical situation."
Meanwhile, India on Friday sent a third tranche of 10 tonnes of relief supplies to Nepal, along with an 11-member team of doctors and paramedics and a reconnaissance crew to assess tunnel rescue operations.
India's External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Friday said that a team for tunnel rescue operations has been sent to Nepal as nearly a hundred people are stranded in a hydropower tunnel.
"Right now, our effort is on supporting Nepal in the relief and rescue of people. Even today I spoke in the morning to the Nepal foreign minister. We have given them a range of support offers and they are evaluating it," he said.
"Right now, the main thing is that in one place where there is a hydroelectric project, there could be possibility of people who may be in a tunnel. So, we are sending a team to help with the experts," he said.
"If they require NDRF people to go, we will send them. We have given them that option," the minister told reporters.
Meanwhile, China sounded a Level-IV alert late on Thursday, saying a large barrier lake had formed near the confluence of the Chhochen Khola and Purepu Tsangpo rivers in Nepal. China’s emergency response system for natural disasters has four levels, with Level-I being the highest and Level IV the lowest.
In Tibet, China was forced to suspend its rescue operation at the hardest-hit area of Gyirong over the risk of renewed flooding on Friday, before saying the threat had eased.
Rescue operations were therefore "proceeding in an orderly manner", it added.
Chinese President Xi Jinping, who chaired a meeting on rescue efforts, offered Beijing's help to Nepal's emergency operations.
Chinese authorities had informed Nepal that around 2 million cubic metres of water had accumulated in the lake, with another 3 million cubic metres potentially entering it over three days, raising concerns about a possible breach.
The lake had formed near the confluence of the Chhochen Khola and Purepu Tsangpo rivers, which originate in Tibet and flow into Nepal as part of the Bhotekoshi river system.
(With inputs from PTI, AFP)