Aerial footage shows scale of devastation in Nepal after flash floods claim over 160 lives

More than 160 people were killed, while hundreds still remain missing after flash floods, triggered by glacial collapse, swept Nepal on Wednesday, causing extensive damages throughout the central region of the Himalayan nation. The flash floods swept many towns and villages, destroying motor bridges and damaging many power projects. 

A major search and rescue operation has been launched that includes the mobilisation of the army units, as many aerial footage have surfaced, showing the damages in Nuwakot and Trishuli districts in the aftermath of the flash floods. 

Nepali Prime Minister Balen Shah is monitoring the situation and has directed officials to provide immediate assistance to the needy, while also extending condolences to those who lost their family members in the devastating tragedy. 

Earthquake or glacial collapse?

Earlier, Nepali government said an earthquake was responsible for the flash floods, but the United States Geological Survey (USGS) has clarified that a ‘glacial collapse’ and a ‘debris flow’ were responsible for Wednesday’s tragedy. Experts have said that Nepal’s topography, a country that is landlocked between India and China, only makes such events more dangerous.

“We do know what climate change trends look like in the Himalayas. There is high confidence of more heat waves, glacial retreat, permafrost reduction, these sorts of things that can drive things like landslides and glacial outburst floods,” Dorothy Heinrich, a researcher at the UK’s University of Reading, told AFP.

Alert in UP, Bihar

Following the flash floods, an alert has been issued for Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, as the two states border Nepal. National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) teams have also been deployed in the states, with the government stepping up its preparedness. 

According to authorities, more than 750 people remain missing. Of them, 133 are Indian nationals. The Indian Embassy in Nepal has now released helpline numbers (+977 985 131 6807, +977 970 910 7500 and +977 981 032 6117) and said it is coordinating with the local administration.

India is providing its assistance to Nepal for the rescue operation, sending tonnes of relief materials, including food and medicines. 

“Always with Nepal. Ambassador Naveen Srivastava handed over 10 tons of humanitarian aid materials from India to the Minister for Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation, Mr. Khadka Raj Poudel. This assistance will contribute to the relief efforts following the devastating floods,” the embassy said on X on Thursday. 

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