Nearing Three Thousand
The number of people missing in the catastrophic flood that sliced through the border area between Nepal and Tibet neared 3'000 on Saturday, as rescuers scoured deep, leg-sucking mud for survivors.
Tolls climb
Figures from Nepal and from Chinese authorities in charge of Tibet put the total number of missing close to 3'000, with 682 bodies recovered. Nepal says there are 2'426 people, including hundreds of foreigners, who are out of contact in the country. It reported an updated death toll of 675 people on Saturday. Tibet, an autonomous region of China, was largely inaccessible to foreign journalists, preventing independent reporting on the scale of the disaster in an area which has multiple villages. China's state Xinhua news agency said on Saturday that 554 people were missing, and seven people had been killed.
100 trapped in tunnels
Nepali army rescue teams were drilling in an "extremely challenging" bid to rescue more than 100 people trapped inside multiple hydropower tunnels. Those trapped in the tunnels were among 933 missing workers from hydropower projects on the rivers where the torrent of icy debris swept down. India has sent an 11-person specialised team. China has also sent a nine-person tunnel team to help.
Reconstruction could cost billions
Nepal's reconstruction bill could run into "billions of dollars", Foreign Minister Shisir Khanal said. "We will do loss and damage research and then we plan, but I am reaching out to our international community for support."
At an army base in the Nepali town of Bidur, a key rescue hub, relatives crowded around lists of rescued people pasted on a wall. "I have come here looking for my son," said Kalka Sharda, scanning the list in desperation. "He was a labourer at the hydropower plant, but I can't find his name, and the authorities are not saying anything."
Aid offers
As many as 93'000 people in Nepal are potentially affected by the disaster, according to the Red Cross. Nepal appealed on Friday for international financial assistance, as well as specialised rescue support, including heavy lift drones, DNA testing kits, and body freezer storage units. Canada has said it will provide CAN$5 million in humanitarian assistance, while the EU has pledged two million euros. Chinese President Xi Jinping offered Beijing's help on Friday.