As of Saturday, rescue operations near the Nepal-China border have reached their fourth day, with authorities still searching for 2,478 individuals who remain unaccounted for following catastrophic flash floods earlier this week. The floods, which buried homes and caused significant loss of life, have prompted a large-scale response. Satellite images taken before and after the disaster reveal the extensive damage inflicted along the border region.
579 killed in Nepal, 1,924 still missing
A 21-member Chinese rescue team, accompanied by a search-and-rescue dog, crossed mountains and valleys and used ropes to navigate forests and cliffs after roads leading to the border complex were destroyed. Nepal’s disaster authority said Friday that the number of missing people had nearly doubled to 1,924. In Tibet’s Gyirong County, at least 558 people were reported missing, according to Chinese state broadcaster CCTV cited by Reuters. At least 540 foreigners are among those missing in the disaster, many of them Hindu pilgrims from India. A statement from India’s ministry of external affairs said that at least 320 Indians are still missing in Nepal, while another 400 remain stranded in Tibet.
“There was no road… it was all virgin forest and sheer cliffs,” rescue worker Zou Mingqi was quotes as saying by news agency Reuters. When the team reached the complex, he said, “as far as the eye could see, there was nothing but ruins.” he added.
