The death toll from Wednesday’s floods in Nepal and Tibet has risen to more than 469, while around 1,500 people remain missing.
More than 500 foreign nationals are among the 826 people missing in Nepal, according to police and tourism officials. The number includes 177 Indian, 90 US, 34 Australian, 33 British and 25 Canadian citizens. Chinese state media reported that at least 558 people are missing on the Tibetan side, including at least 260 foreign nationals.
The Red Cross said around 93,000 people may have been affected and launched an urgent appeal for $31 million to help those affected by the floods.
Power plants, roads and bridges have also been destroyed along a route connecting Kathmandu in Nepal with Lhasa in Tibet.
Authorities in Nepal and Tibet are also warning of further flooding, as debris carried by the floodwaters has blocked waterways, creating temporary lakes that could overflow.
Residents of Nepal’s Rasuwa district, near the border with Tibet, were seen running towards the hills to escape a possible sudden rise in the river level, according to witnesses.
The risk that the natural barrier holding back one of the lakes could give way had earlier prompted Chinese rescue teams and vehicles to move to a safe area, state broadcaster CCTV reported on Friday.
Source: The Guardian
