At least 18 people, including some Chinese nationals, have gone missing after a flood in Lhendekhola, located on the Nepal-China border. Among the missing are three Nepal Police officers, three drivers, six Nepali workers, and six Chinese nationals.
According to authorities, the flood also swept away cargo containers and other vehicles near the Rasuwagadhi customs office. The road from Syafrubesi to the Rasuwagadhi border point has been closed.
The Nepal Army has rescued 20 people trapped in the Rasuwa Hydropower Project Area. Two security personnel and seven civilians trapped in different locations were rescued as well. Partial damage to the project’s dam has been reported.
According to the Department of Hydrology and Meteorology’s Flood Forecasting Division, at around 3 a.m. on Tuesday, a sudden massive flood entered the Tibet region into river.
The department estimates that the flood was likely not caused by rainfall but rather by a glacial lake outburst.
According to the department, the World Meteorological Organization’s “Flash Flood Guidance System” and its “Global HydroEstimator Satellite-Based Precipitation Estimates” did not record rainfall in the Bhote Koshi watershed area in the past 24 hours.
