New Delhi: More than 350 people have died after a massive flash flood struck areas along the Nepal-Tibet border, with hundreds of others still missing. Search and rescue teams are continuing their work as authorities try to establish the full scale and cause of the disaster.
Because her phone is switched off, leaving him worried that she may also have been swept away, he has since been unable to reach her. The Nepal Tourism Board said foreign nationals reported missing include citizens of India, Australia, the Netherlands, the United States, Malaysia, the United Kingdom and South Africa.
Nepal’s foreign minister initially said there had been reports of an earthquake near the Tibet-Nepal border shortly before the landslide. However, an analysis by the US Geological Survey said there was no earthquake in the area at that time. She said there was almost no chance for them to escape. Her son Sugam Malla said he pulled his mother to safety.
This led to an initial possibility that ground movement may have caused the disaster. Authorities and experts are now examining other possible causes of the sudden movement of earth, rocks and water. She survived with her son after they managed to climb onto the roof of a house.
Before the flooding, he had handed his phone to his sister so she could keep it safe and use it to contact people if needed.
How are governments responding?
Because of the disaster, nepal’s Prime Minister Balen Shah said the country is in shock and distress.
He said Nepalese authorities would work with China on relief and rescue operations. Prime Minister Narendra Modi said the Indian government is ready to provide Nepal with “all possible humanitarian assistance” following the disaster. UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham said the British government would make “every possible effort” to help British citizens in Nepal affected by the disaster.
India has also offered assistance.
