Hopes of finding survivors dim a week after catastrophic Nepal flood

Hopes of finding survivors dim a week after catastrophic Nepal flood

Death toll rises past 1,200, with nearly 4,200 people missing

Rescuers save over 100 in Nepal, thousands still missing

Rescue teams raced on Wednesday to reach dozens of workers believed to be trapped inside hydropower tunnels in Nepal's mountains, offering one of the last hopes of finding survivors a week after a Himalayan flood killed more than 1,200 people.

The flood, triggered by the collapse of a glacier near Nepal's border with China, devastated towns and valleys across the mountainous region. At least 1,204 people have been confirmed dead and more than 4,200 remain missing.

Rescue efforts have increasingly centered on hydroelectric project tunnels where authorities believe workers may have survived after being cut off by floodwaters and debris.

Some tunnels contain chambers with air supplies, and rescuers were trying to reach about 900 missing workers.

"We are very confident that there is life in there because ... there is food and water in the building, that was likely built for communication purposes and as a resting place," Amshu Kiran Shahi, a board member of the Nepal Electricity Authority, told Reuters.

The chance of finding survivors elsewhere was fading, authorities said, but there was no let up in rescue operations as teams scoured the mountainside along the border with China where floods tore through towns and valleys.

"The hope of finding survivors is decreasing," Phanindra Paudel, a senior official at Nepal's National Emergency Operation Center (NEOC), said. "We pray and are hopeful. Hope is hope!"

Prime Minister Balendra Shah told parliament the search would continue.

"Our priority remains clear: To continue our search and rescue operations, find those who are still missing and continue supporting everyone affected," he said.

Major rescue operations were underway or planned at tunnels at four projects and two of them with a total of nearly 100 people missing offered the strongest hopes of finding survivors because of the presence of air inside, Shahi said.

At Trishuli-3A, one of the two projects, officials believe there was a dry space inside and expected oxygen to be flowing through the tunnel, with pipes also being used to push oxygen inside, Shahi said.

Specialized rescue teams from India, China and the United States were involved in the tunnel rescue attempts.

More than 1,000 dead from catastrophic Nepal-China floods as rescuers search for survivors

Nepal flash flood death toll climbs to 579, with 32 Canadians, permanent residents among missing

Across the border in Tibet, China's official toll increased, with at least 21 dead and 541 missing.

The update came after Beijing fully reopened the road leading to the Gyirong border crossing, which was obliterated by the giant wall of water and debris that crashed through the area, allowing heavy machinery to reach the core disaster zone for the first time.

Tibet disaster zone becomes accessible

Chinese state broadcaster CCTV showed excavators, rescue teams, search dogs and life-detection equipment being deployed in a narrow mountain gorge where rain, unstable cliffs and a fast-flowing river have hampered operations.

Rescuers are focusing on structures including the inspection building, parking lots and dormitories in the now flattened area as they conduct a "deep search" for survivors, local newspaper Tibet Daily reported on Wednesday, citing a media briefing by the government.

China's official toll of those missing includes 104 Nepali citizens, 49 Indians as well as 33 Latvians who are believed to be part of two tourist groups. Most Indians were part of groups visiting Lake Mansarovar and Mount Kailash in Tibet, holy pilgrimage sites for Hindus.

Beijing will send more DNA identification experts and emergency supplies including temporary Bailey bridges, mortuary refrigerators and communications equipment to Nepal to help with the relief efforts, the foreign ministry said on Wednesday.

Drone video reveals flood devastation in Devighat, Nepal

Residents in Nepal's affected areas walked around the remains of what were once bustling villages and towns, trying to salvage whatever they could of their belongings.

"My husband and I were able to escape safely. But we could not pick up anything," said Shanta Sunar, 45, a shopkeeper and survivor from Nuwakot.

"We have lost whatever we had. But we are lucky nothing happened to us."

Nepal restoring power supply, telecommunication

Children in Nuwakot and Rasuwa areas are increasingly showing signs of psychological distress after witnessing the fury of the flood last week, international charity Save the Children said in a statement.

Many minors told Save the Children that they are fearful and anxious after witnessing wide-ranging horrors including school buses full of friends washed away, their homes submerged and everything they hold dear carried away by the waters, the charity said.

Traumatized survivors of Nepal flooding need more than food and shelter: aid worker

Nepalese Prime Minister Balendra Shah said the government, helped by foreign assistance, was restoring telecommunication, power supply and transport links through Bailey bridges, with 95 per cent of telecom services restored in the affected areas by Tuesday.

The disaster has disrupted 431 megawatts of electricity generation capacity, he told parliament on Wednesday.

"This was one of the major disasters experienced by human civilization," Shah said. "As soon as information was received that the flood was approaching, our security personnel were deployed to warn local residents. Some of those personnel themselves went missing."