Rescue Operations Save Hundreds, Yet Many Remain Unaccounted

KATHMANDU, Aug 30 – The flash floods that devastated Nepal have left 734 dead, according to the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority’s latest figures released on Sunday morning. The authority also stated that 2,498 people are still missing, with the highest concentrations in Chitwan (259), Rasuwa (13), Nuwakot (52), Dhading (50), Gorkha (58), East Nawalparasi (184), West Nawalparasi (82) and Tanahun (36).

The Nepalese Army reported that its teams rescued 183 individuals from the Timure, Dhunche and Hakuvesi areas, including four Chinese nationals, completing the rescue by 11 a.m. More than 8,400 soldiers have been deployed across the flood‑hit districts to assist in relief work. Among those still missing are 27 police officers, 45 army personnel, 13 armed police, 15 customs staff and four immigration officers.

The District Emergency Operation Centre has accounted for 562 missing from Rasuwa and 115 from Nuwakot. The Nepal Electricity Authority disclosed that 933 workers at a hydro‑power project, 65 people in Makwanpur and 589 foreign nationals are untraceable, along with 127 Nepali tourists and three visitors to Langtang National Park.

NEA also reported that 242 patients are currently receiving treatment in hospitals. A surgical medical team has been dispatched to the most affected zones. In the Bhotekoshi region, 19,895 security personnel are engaged in search, rescue and relief missions. Helicopter operations have rescued 279 people trapped in a hydro‑project tunnel and have evacuated 227 foreign nationals overall.

At the Gyirong Port on the China‑Nepal border, 261 foreign citizens from 23 nations are listed as missing, including 104 Nepalis, 49 Indians, 33 Latvians, 18 Americans and 15 Britons.