A massive flood hit the Himalayan mountain region of north-central Nepal bordering China on the morning of the 26th, and the number of missing tallied in the Nepal–China Tibet border area neared 1,500. Nepal police and China's state media said on the 27th (local time) that more than 800 of those missing on both sides are foreigners.
Reuters said more than 165 people have been counted dead so far in Nepal. As of the morning of the 27th, the number of missing was 826, of whom about 600 are foreigners. Abhi Narayan Kapley, Nepal Police Spokesperson, told Reuters, "As we have resumed the search, more bodies are likely to be found, so the number will rise."
Among the missing foreigners, Indians were the most at 177. They were followed by the United States (63), Australia (34), the United Kingdom (33), and Canada (25).
At the same time, as counting and search operations ramped up in China's Tibet Autonomous Region, which was also hit, the number of missing surged. China Central Television (CCTV) said on the 27th that 558 people were missing in Gyirong county in the Tibet Autonomous Region. Of these, 260 were foreigners.
The Nepal government is currently focused on rescue operations, deploying more than 5,000 military and police personnel. Nepal Army Spokesperson Raja Ram Basnet said that relief supplies such as tents and food sent by India were being slung under helicopters and dropped into the hardest-hit areas. Thousands of residents have been isolated after roads were cut off by the floods and landslides.
The risk of secondary damage remains. CCTV said on the 27th that Chinese authorities had identified a lake upstream of Gyirong county where water is still trapped. The lake is believed to have formed when landslide debris temporarily dammed a river. If the pooled river water bursts again, rescue efforts in the mountainous terrain are expected to become much more difficult.
The U.S. State Department sent disaster response advisers to Nepal and decided to provide $500,000 (about 700 million won). U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres said U.N. bodies and partner agencies are sending supplies and personnel. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney wrote on X that the flood was "absolutely devastating."
Sagar Pandey, chief executive of a Himalayan tour company, told Reuters after surveying the affected area by helicopter, "Nothing made by people or where people lived remains. It is all flat." He said 15 Indian-origin Australians who left on the company's pilgrimage package were missing, and added, "Whether it was a hotel, a restaurant, or a car, I believe everyone who was inside is gone."