August 27, 2026
An aerial view shows houses lying deluged in sludge after flash floods at Devighat, Bidur Municipality in Nepal’s Nuwakot district on August 27, 2026. Nepal’s disaster agency said that 823 people remained out of contact on August 27, more than 24 hours after a deadly flood tore through the border region with Tibet. (Photo by Prabin RANABHAT / AFP)
Rescue teams scoured devastated zones Thursday for more than 1,300 people missing a day after flash floods and landslides along the Nepal-Tibet border killed at least 180, sweeping away entire villages.
Homes were engulfed and vehicles tossed around like they were toys by the tsunami-like rumble of water and mud that struck villages and towns on Wednesday morning on the path of two rivers — Bhote Koshi and Trishuli.
Many of the missing are foreign tourists caught in the disaster that the US Geological Survey believe was caused by a glacial collapse that sent forth a overwhelming flow of icy debris.
