Nepal Flooding: Rising Death Toll and Rescue Efforts

The death toll from last week’s flooding in Nepal has climbed to 903, officials reported on Monday. The number of those missing has nearly doubled to 4,247. Among the missing are 592 foreign nationals, as stated by Nepal’s National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority.

State Department spokesperson Tommy Pigott shared with Fox News that approximately 85 Americans remain unaccounted for. Rescuers are still facing challenges reaching devastated areas after the flood triggered by a glacier collapse in the Nepal-Tibet border region on Wednesday.

The disaster here is overwhelming, said Ferrin Cole, operations director at U.S.-based Crisis Response International, to NBC News. He described how the flood annihilated cities and emphasized the urgency in providing aid.

More than 90,000 people have been impacted by the disaster, according to the Nepal Red Cross. Morgues in Nepal are struggling with the number of bodies. A police officer in Chitwan district informed Reuters that over half of the bodies recovered are unidentifiable.

Separate reports from China indicate 16 deaths and 546 missing in Tibet, including numerous foreigners. The overlap between the Chinese and Nepali missing persons is unclear. Authorities have rescued over 10,400 individuals, including 277 foreign nationals, according to Nepali officials.

A lake formed by landslides above the border checkpoint poses additional challenges, as it is overflowing. China’s state-run media, CCTV, stated the risk of a total breach is relatively low.

Heavy rain continues in Nepal, increasing river levels and prompting new alerts for residents near waterways.