A flash flood has killed at least 165 people in Nepal and Tibet, leaving hundreds missing after torrents of water, mud and debris devastated the Himalayan border region on Wednesday.
The disaster struck along a remote and strategically important section of the Nepal China frontier, destroying settlements and vital infrastructure while leaving authorities facing a rapidly expanding search and rescue operation.
Nepalese officials said 162 bodies had been recovered, while Chinese authorities reported three deaths at Gyirong Port in Tibet, with hundreds of people still unaccounted for as rescue teams worked through damaged communities.
⚠️ Extremely Distressing Footage Shows Mudslide Sweeping Up Fleeing Citizens, Cars, & Buildings On China-Nepal Border
Viewer discretion.
📹 @mcudirector https://t.co/RV9HxrYyP4 pic.twitter.com/pFtKSs5v42
— RT_India (@RT_India_news) August 26, 2026
Hundreds Remain Unaccounted For
Nepal’s Department of Tourism said 468 tourists and travellers remained out of contact on Thursday, including 393 foreign nationals and 75 Nepalis whose whereabouts could not immediately be established.
The missing foreign nationals included at least 133 Indians, 47 Americans, 34 Australians, 33 Britons, 24 Canadians and 19 Malaysians, alongside people from more than 20 other countries, including four Russians.
Officials cautioned that losing contact with a traveller did not automatically mean the person had been caught in the flooding, because damaged roads, electricity networks and communications systems have made contact difficult across the mountainous area.
Many travellers were pilgrims heading towards Mount Kailash in Tibet, while Nepali trekkers were travelling towards Gosaikunda Lake before the Janai Purnima festival, adding urgency to efforts to establish their safety.
❗Nepal Floods: At Least 7 Dead, Security Personnel Missing 🇳🇵
The worst-hit areas include Timure and Syabrubesi in Rasuwa, where floodwaters have swept away homes, bridges and parts of a key road towards the China border, according to The Kathmandu Post.
Nine Armed Police… https://t.co/OGz6YNAMPx pic.twitter.com/XRGgZGxHj7
— RT_India (@RT_India_news) August 26, 2026
Floodwaters Tear Through Communities
The Bhote Koshi River surged at about 9am local time, sending water, mud and debris through the Syapru Besi and Timure areas of Rasuwa district before the flood moved downstream into the Trishuli River.
Footage from the affected areas showed houses, vehicles, bridges and other structures being overwhelmed as residents attempted to escape the rapidly advancing water and debris.
The scale and speed of the river rise complicated warnings and evacuation efforts, with the Kathmandu-based International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development reporting that the Trishuli climbed by as much as nine metres within 30 minutes at one monitoring station.
Another monitoring station recorded a rise of about seven metres over a similar period, while several flood-monitoring installations were damaged or swept away during the disaster.
Authorities urged people living near riverbanks in Rasuwa, Nuwakot, Dhading, Gorkha and Chitwan to move to higher ground as officials continued assessing conditions along the river system.
Roads Bridges And Power Systems Destroyed
The flooding caused extensive damage to transport infrastructure, with at least 19 motorable bridges and nearly 40 kilometres of roads reportedly swept away, isolating communities and making access to damaged areas considerably harder.
Nepal’s electricity infrastructure was also badly affected, with 11 hydropower projects and one solar facility suffering damage that removed 431.1 megawatts of generating capacity from the national grid.
Transmission lines and substations were damaged in the flooding, while electricity supplies were completely interrupted in Rasuwa and disrupted in several neighbouring districts.
The destruction of roads and bridges has forced rescue agencies to rely heavily on helicopters while soldiers, police officers and other emergency personnel work in areas affected by deep mud, strong currents and difficult Himalayan terrain.
Nepal deployed its army and police to the emergency response, although the operation has also been complicated by the disappearance of at least 28 police officers who were in the affected region.
Trishuli Bazaar After The Floods 🇳🇵
The river has redrawn the landscape.
Drone footage shows entire rows of riverside homes gone, leaving behind a barren expanse of mud, debris and scattered structures.
📹 Social Media https://t.co/RV9HxrYyP4 pic.twitter.com/0rToqQpbPU
— RT_India (@RT_India_news) August 26, 2026
Glacial Collapse Linked To Deadly Surge
Early reports suggested that an earthquake may have triggered the disaster, but the United States Geological Survey subsequently identified a massive glacial collapse and debris flow as the event behind the catastrophic downstream flooding.
ICIMOD said an ice-rock avalanche may have crashed into the Lhende Khola and temporarily obstructed the river before releasing a powerful surge, although investigators were still working to establish the precise chain of events.
The possibility of another flood remained a concern, with ICIMOD warning that a blockage was still lodged upstream and could generate another sudden release of water.
Authorities issued evacuation orders around Gyirong Port as a precaution, while the repeated flooding of the Lhende Khola raised additional concerns about conditions in an area already struck by a deadly flash flood last August.
That earlier disaster killed nine people after a glacial lake in Tibet overflowed, highlighting the exposure of communities and infrastructure to rapidly developing hazards in the high-altitude border region.
China Expands Search For Missing
Chinese authorities reported three deaths and 558 people missing in Tibet’s Gyirong County by Thursday morning, a sharp increase from an earlier figure of 265 people believed to be unaccounted for.
Chinese state broadcaster CCTV reported that 260 of those missing were foreign nationals, while state media said two people had been rescued alive as emergency personnel continued searching damaged areas.
The flood severely damaged the border crossing, burying structures beneath debris and destroying sections of road, while Xinhua reported that rescuers initially faced major difficulties reaching the central disaster zone.
Raging water, continued rain and destroyed roadbeds prevented straightforward access, forcing emergency teams to work under hazardous conditions while searching for survivors and people who remained unaccounted for.
Chinese President Xi Jinping ordered rescuers to continue efforts to locate missing people, evacuate those facing danger and guard against additional disasters during the ongoing emergency.
Tibet activated its highest Level-I natural-disaster response, while Beijing introduced a national Level-II emergency response and deployed firefighters, troops, engineers and other specialists to reinforce the search.
Rescue Efforts Receive Reinforcements
China sent an additional 111-member rescue team to Tibet on Thursday, equipped with detection, communications and lifesaving equipment intended to strengthen operations around the devastated border area.
A PLA Y-20 military transport aircraft also carried a Western Theater Command team to Tibet, with the group tasked with helping coordinate the wider rescue response.
Financial support was also announced, with China allocating 120 million yuan, equivalent to about $16.8 million, in central disaster-relief funds and a further 100 million yuan for emergency infrastructure restoration.
The measures reflected the scale of the damage facing the border region, where destroyed transport links and damaged public facilities have created additional obstacles for emergency workers attempting to reach isolated areas.
India Places Downstream Areas On Alert
Nepal requested assistance from both India and China as rescue teams confronted damaged infrastructure and difficult terrain, while authorities downstream monitored the Bhote Koshi and Trishuli river systems.
The Bhote Koshi eventually feeds into the Trishuli, which continues into India as the Gandak, prompting authorities in Bihar and Uttar Pradesh to monitor water levels and prepare for possible downstream effects.
India began sending emergency assistance to Nepal, with an Indian Air Force C-130J aircraft carrying about 10 tonnes of shelters, blankets, hygiene supplies, solar lamps and medicines departing for Kathmandu on Wednesday night.
The assistance followed a telephone conversation between Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Nepalese Prime Minister Balendra Shah, during which Modi offered “all possible humanitarian assistance.”
India said further transport aircraft and helicopters were being prepared to support relief work and evacuation operations as authorities on both sides of the border continued assessing the disaster’s human and infrastructure toll.