A massive flood in the north-central Himalayan mountain region of Nepal has left 95 people dead and more than 400 missing so far. Nine Koreans also lost contact and 10 were stranded, but they are understood to be safe.
According to Reuters and the AP on the 26th (local time), a massive flood occurred around 8:40 a.m. that day in areas across Bagmati Province in north-central Nepal. Ninety-five people died in the disaster. A total of 403 people, including 341 foreigners, are missing. However, Bagmati Province police said, "The number of confirmed deaths so far could rise further."
The Nepal Tourism Board said the missing foreign tourists are of various nationalities, including India, Australia, the Netherlands, the United States, Malaysia, the United Kingdom, and South Africa. In particular, more than 100 of the missing foreigners are reported to be Indian nationals.
Korea's Ministry of Foreign Affairs also said that nine Korean employees of Korea South-East Power Co. (KOEN) and Doosan Enerbility(034020), who had been building a hydropower plant locally, lost contact due to the flood in the Rasuwa area of Bagmati Province. Another 10 Koreans with Doosan Enerbility were also stranded locally but are said to be awaiting rescue with more than 200 employees, including Nepalis. The government plans to dispatch a joint rapid response team to Nepal on the 27th.
A large landslide also occurred the same day in the area of China's Tibet Autonomous Region bordering Nepal, with three people dead and 265 missing so far. The exact number of casualties is still being verified, and rescue work is underway.
The flooded area is about 120 kilometers north of the capital, Kathmandu. It is also a border region with China's Tibet Autonomous Region in the Himalayas. Due to poor local road conditions, it reportedly takes more than half a day by car from Kathmandu.
The Nepal government said the flood occurred when a glacier collapsed following an earthquake in the Tibet Autonomous Region. Minister Shishir Khanal of Nepal's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in parliament that preliminary findings show an earthquake struck around 8:37 a.m., and a flash flood was reported three minutes later, explaining that a massive landslide blocked the flow of the Bhotekoshi River. He added that the exact cause of the flood requires further confirmation.
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) also said that at the same time, a magnitude-4.4 earthquake struck the Tibet region 47 kilometers north of Rasuwa, and that the quake's depth was relatively shallow at 10 kilometers.