Images of the devastating flood between Tibet and Nepal

It is thought that an avalanche from Mount Pangsang Lekh, on the border between China and Nepal, caused the Bhote Koshi River to burst its banks, leading to the flooding of the Trishuli River. Once the debris reached the river, it triggered waves of water and mud that swept away buildings and people. The causes of the landslide remain unclear: it may have been a 4.4-magnitude earthquake, or, according to Daniel Shugar, a geologist at the University of Calgary in Canada, the collapse of a section of the mountain’s glacier.

There are still few certainties. It is undoubtedly the greatest disaster in Nepal’s history since the 2015 earthquake, which claimed nearly 9,000 lives. According to initial estimates, there are around a hundred confirmed deaths and thousands missing, including 466 foreigners. The local Chinese authorities have reported that there are at least three deaths and 265 people missing on Chinese territory.

The Chinese state news agency Xinhua has reported ‘numerous’ casualties in the port of Gyirong, China, where footage released by state media shows floodwaters sweeping away buildings, uprooting trees and rendering roads impassable. 

Chinese leader Xi Jinping has ordered local authorities to “do everything possible” to search for and rescue missing residents. Xi issued a statement emphasising the need to prevent flooding, and other members of the Politburo Standing Committee in Beijing have expressed similar views.