Rescue teams searched on Thursday for hundreds missing along the Nepal-China border after a glacier collapse triggered catastrophic floods that killed at least 353 people. Nepal said more than 1,300 people were missing, while Tibet reported at least three dead and 558 missing. Helicopters were deployed because roads and bridges were damaged, and the U.N. released $2 million for relief. Experts said the disaster showed the Himalayan region’s growing vulnerability to glacier-related flooding.
A flood survivor returns to home following a flash flood in Devighat Village, Nuwakot district, Nepal, Thursay. EPA-Yonhap
DEVIGHAT, Nepal — Rescue teams searched on Thursday for hundreds of missing people along the Nepal-China border, where a catastrophic and deadly torrent of water and mud several stories high swept through communities a day earlier following a glacier collapse.
Videos of the disaster showed people running before the floodwaters swallowed them up and washed out buildings and bridges. At least 353 people were killed, police said, and more than 1,300 are missing, including scores of foreigners and pilgrims. Hundreds others have been displaced across the Himalayan region.
The steep slopes and lush valleys below the Himalayan mountain range — home to many of the world’s highest peaks and remaining glaciers — are especially vulnerable to flooding and landslides. Melting glaciers have become more common because of human-caused climate change.
