The death toll from devastating flash floods in Nepal and Tibet has risen to 547, with 1,545 people still missing, as rescue teams continue searching riverbanks and isolated settlements for survivors and bodies swept downstream.
The flood struck the Bhotekoshi river area around Timure and Syaphrubesi in Rasuwa, close to the Nepal-China border, on Wednesday morning. A massive surge of water and debris damaged roads, bridges, buildings and other infrastructure before flowing downstream into the Trishuli river system.
Three days after the disaster, the full scale of the devastation continues to emerge, with bodies being recovered far from the original flood zone.
The Bhotekoshi is part of the Trishuli river system, allowing floodwaters to carry people and debris over a considerable distance.
Bodies and human remains have been recovered in Nuwakot, Dhading, Gorkha, Tanahun, Chitwan and Nawalparasi.
The widening search and recovery operation has also created a major challenge for authorities over the storage and identification of recovered bodies.
Chitwan has been particularly affected by the influx of bodies.
By Friday afternoon, 186 bodies had been recovered there, while hospitals in the district could collectively accommodate only around 30 to 50 bodies in their existing morgues.
Authorities are converting an unused building of the Industrial Enterprise Development Institute in Bharatpur into a temporary body-storage centre. The facility is expected to accommodate around 250 bodies.
Bharatpur Metropolitan City is repairing and equipping the building, while local business organisations have agreed to arrange dry ice.
Authorities have also identified the electric crematorium at Devghat as an additional option if the temporary facility reaches capacity.
Nawalparasi East is facing a similar problem. Bodies have been transferred to Pokhara, Butwal, Bhairahawa and Palpa after hospitals and other health facilities reached capacity.
A community forest hall in Kawasoti has also been converted into a temporary morgue.
Pokhara has emerged as another major destination for bodies recovered downstream. Authorities have transported 93 bodies to the city from Tanahun, Gorkha, Nawalparasi East and Dhading.
Hospitals in Kaski have a combined morgue capacity of 88 bodies, meaning existing capacity has already been exceeded.
The bodies are currently being stored at temperatures between 2 and 6 degrees Celsius. Hospital officials said this is generally sufficient to preserve remains for around 10 days to two weeks.
Beyond that period, much lower temperatures would be required. Pokhara does not currently have a facility capable of maintaining sub-zero temperatures for large numbers of bodies.
Identifying the dead has emerged as one of the biggest challenges.
Police are photographing bodies, collecting fingerprints, conducting post-mortems and taking DNA samples where necessary. Where facial identification is possible, photographs can help families determine whether a missing relative has been found.
DNA samples are being sent to Kathmandu for testing at the Nepal Academy of Science and Technology and the Nepal Police Central Forensic Science Laboratory.
Authorities are also preparing for the possibility that some bodies may remain unidentified.
Under the Unidentified and Unclaimed Bodies Management Guidelines, police say unidentified remains cannot be kept indefinitely. Authorities are preparing to coordinate with local governments to designate secure burial sites.
Each body will be assigned a tag number, with burial details recorded so that the remains can be traced later if the person is identified through DNA or other evidence.
Families of missing people have begun travelling to downstream districts, particularly Chitwan, as more bodies are recovered.
Some relatives have arrived carrying photographs of family members who disappeared in the flood and are gathering near temporary body-storage facilities, hoping for information about their loved ones.
The number of missing people has risen to 1,545, according to the latest figures.
Nepal Police had earlier said 28 police personnel who lost contact during the disaster were still unaccounted for.
The missing include civilians, tourists, trekkers and travellers whose whereabouts have not yet been confirmed.
Authorities are continuing to verify whether some people listed as missing have reached safety but have not yet been accounted for.
The Tourism Board said 117 foreign tourists had been rescued from flood-affected areas of Rasuwa.
They include 85 Indians, 16 Chinese, nine South Koreans, two Americans and two Italians. The nationalities of three others were still being established.
Helicopters have been used to evacuate people from isolated areas, while security forces continue searching settlements and riverbanks.
More than 4,400 police personnel have been mobilised for search and rescue operations. The Nepali Army and Armed Police Force are also involved.
Nepal Police said security forces have rescued or provided primary assistance to 1,473 people in Nuwakot, Rasuwa and Dhading.
Destroyed roads and bridges have made access difficult, forcing authorities to rely heavily on helicopters in some areas.
Authorities are also monitoring a possible new surge of water from the Chinese side of the border, as per Kathmandu post.
A large barrier lake has formed near the confluence of the Chhochen Khola and Purepu Tsangpo rivers in China. China's Ministry of Water Resources estimated the lake's volume at around 2 million cubic metres on Thursday morning and warned that another 3 million cubic metres of water could flow into it over the following three days.
Local authorities later received information that the lake had breached.
However, the Nepali government has not confirmed that a major lake or dam collapse occurred.
Government spokesperson and Education Minister Sasmit Pokharel said Nepal had received information that glaciers had broken, causing water mixed with debris to overflow. He said there was no information that a dam itself had collapsed and that China had indicated there was no immediate major threat.
The two accounts have not yet been fully reconciled.
The Chhochen Khola and Purepu Tsangpo originate in Tibet and merge before entering Nepal, where the river is known as the Bhotekoshi.
Nepal's National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority has reported that the Bhotekoshi water level has risen.
Helicopters stationed in Dhunche and other parts of Rasuwa are being prepared for aerial reconnaissance of the river and surrounding areas. Authorities are also moving people living close to the river towards safer locations.
The objective is to determine whether additional water released upstream could trigger another dangerous surge through areas already devastated by Wednesday's flood.
The Cabinet has decided that the prime minister and all ministers will contribute one month's salary and remuneration to the Prime Minister's Natural Disaster Relief Fund.
The government has also directed the finance ministry to prepare relief and rehabilitation packages for people and businesses affected by flooding along the Nepal-China border, the Bhotekoshi river and downstream areas.
India is sending additional humanitarian assistance, with a third military aircraft carrying 12 tonnes of relief materials expected to arrive in Nepal. Two earlier consignments brought more than 47 tonnes of relief supplies.
The United States has also offered assistance. US President Donald Trump said Washington had contacted Nepal and would provide whatever help was needed.
The US State Department said it was tracking 90 Americans who may have been affected and remained unaccounted for, while three had been rescued. Washington has also announced $500,000 in assistance and said it would send a disaster response adviser.
The immediate priority remains finding survivors and missing people. But three days after the flood, the disaster has expanded into a major search and recovery operation spanning several districts.
Authorities are simultaneously working to identify recovered bodies, support families searching for relatives and manage temporary storage facilities.
Damaged roads and bridges continue to complicate access, while officials monitor the Bhotekoshi for any further rise in water.
The reported development involving the barrier lake on the Chinese side has added another layer of uncertainty, with Nepal yet to establish exactly how much water, if any, has been released downstream.
For now, authorities are urging people living along the Bhotekoshi and Trishuli river systems to remain alert.
The death toll has risen to 547, while 1,545 people remain missing, as the search for survivors and bodies continues far beyond the area where the flood began.
