Flash flood devastates Nepal-China border; Nine dead,19 missing as rescue ops continue

Rasuwa [Nepal], July 10 (ANI): The flash flood that took place along the Nepal-China border on Tuesday has left behind a trail of devastation, disrupting lives and infrastructure and leaving at least nine people dead and 19 others missing.
The flood was triggered by a sudden surge from Tibet's Lhende River that had buried vehicles under debris and swept away roads in the region.

Three days after the disaster, the Rasuwagadhi-Timure region remains completely cut off from the outside world. The Nepal Army, along with local residents, is navigating dangerous slopes to access the area. Electricity, internet, and telephone services have been down since Tuesday, and the trauma of the event continues to haunt survivors.
"I was trapped in the area across the river due to the flood. I had warned my friends to get across, but the flood swept them away, and I survived by going to the upper land areas that day (Tuesday)," Ram Bahadur Tharu, a survivor of the flooding along the Nepal-China border, told ANI.
Ram Bahadur, one of the seven survivors from a group of 13, recounted the harrowing moments of Tuesday's flash flood. Six of his companions have been missing since that morning, with no signs of their whereabouts.
Footage from the disaster site reveals the scale of destruction--collapsed infrastructure, including the Miteri Bridge that once linked Nepal and China, and container trucks and electric vehicles tossed around like toys.
Over 1,100 metres of road across ten different locations have been severely damaged. Four hydropower plants have sustained extensive destruction, while local officials report that the region's dry port has been rendered inoperative. Efforts to restore access and begin recovery have been severely hampered by the inability to bring in heavy machinery.
"We were not given any alert or warning about the flood. We felt as if an earthquake had struck the region as the flooding started. We rushed out from our room and saw the river increasing," Tharu added.
The devastating flood along the Nepal-China border was likely caused by intense rainfall and a possible glacial lake outburst on the Chinese side, leading to a rapid rise in the Bhotekoshi River. Due to the absence of a real-time data-sharing system with China, Nepali authorities were unaware of the impending disaster until the floodwaters reached Betrawati, the border point between Rasuwa and Nuwakot districts.
The sudden deluge swept away vital infrastructure, including roads, bridges, and hydropower facilities, as well as numerous vehicles. Several container trucks and electric vehicles parked at the Rasuwagadhi dry port were also destroyed. Among the worst-hit was the Friendship Bridge, a crucial trade link between Nepal and Tibet, whose destruction has brought cross-border transit and trade to a standstill.
Rescue operations are continuing, with teams working around the clock to evacuate those stranded in the affected areas. According to Arjun Paudel, Chief District Officer of Rasuwa, 150 individuals--including 127 foreign nationals--had been rescued by Thursday morning.
"Disruption in electricity and telephone services in the area has made the rescue operation harder. There is very limited communication through the Chinese border, and along with rescue operations, efforts are underway to restore telephone connectivity and resume electricity supply," Paudel told ANI over the phone.
Authorities fear that several of the missing individuals may have been swept away or buried under debris in the customs yard. Search and rescue operations are ongoing; however, progress is being hindered by impassable roads and the unavailability of heavy machinery in the disaster-hit area. (ANI)