Global Affairs collecting DNA from families of Canadians missing in Nepal

There are 29 Canadians unaccounted for following flash flooding last week

Federal government officials said Global Affairs Canada is working to collect DNA from the families of Canadians still missing in Nepal and China after a flash flood ripped through the border region last week.

Senior government officials, briefing reporters on background, said they are starting to collect the samples from the families of 29 people still considered missing, with assistance from the RCMP and police forces in Nepal and China.

The flooding on Aug. 26 killed more than 1,100 people and left roughly 4,400 missing after a glacier collapsed in the Himalayan border region between Nepal and China.

In Kathmandu, police have buried dozens of unidentified bodies in trenches because there are too many to keep or identify individually.

One Canadian was found safe, while the remaining 29 are believed to have been in the region where the flash flood occurred.

The Nepal Tourism Board reported on Sept. 1 that more than 580 foreign nationals and tourists were still unaccounted for, while another 330 had been rescued.

Federal officials said the situation is changing by the day and they continue to work with local authorities and the families of the missing.

Global Affairs has 10 officials in Kathmandu and has established points of contact with the families of the missing Canadians.

Search, recovery and identification efforts are being led by Nepali and Chinese authorities and Canada has offered assistance, the federal officials said.

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