Kathmandu, Nepal — Authorities temporary stopped rescue efforts Friday due to fears that a newly formed, overflowing lake could trigger further flooding in areas devastated by a catastrophic flash flood along the Himalayan border between Nepal and China. Rescuers had been working through mud and debris, looking for hundreds of people still missing as the disaster's death toll rose. Nepal police said Friday morning that the country's death toll had risen to 469 from 390 a day earlier, as rescuers recover more bodies amid the debris.
China hasn't updated its report of just three deaths in Tibet. Together, the two countries have said more than 1,500 people are missing. Nepali and Chinese authorities warned of further flooding because a lake that formed upstream behind immense piles of debris after Wednesday's disaster was already overflowing.
They urged people in potentially affected areas to move to safer ground. China's Ministry of Water Resources said Thursday that the lake held around 70 million cubic feet of water and was expected to receive another 106 million cubic feet over the next three days. Chinese state broadcaster CCTV reported Friday morning that the lake's barrier was more than six miles from Gyirong Port, the border crossing with Nepal that was engulfed by mud and floodwater.
CCTV said the lake was at an elevation of 9,680 feet, some 3,280 feet above Gyirong Port. The Nepal Army said a team was sent to the border point to inspect the Bhotekoshi River amid the potential of more floods. Nepal's National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority said Friday that 3,253 people had been airlifted by helicopter from the country's disaster area.
Flood survivors, including injured people, were taken to Kathmandu and other locations. Foreigners from multiple countries were among the missing, many of them trekkers and pilgrims. Nepali Army spokesperson Brig.
Raja Ram Basnet told The a team had been deployed Friday to the Upper Trishuli-1 Hydropower Project near the Nepal-China border following reports that people were trapped inside a tunnel. "It is complicated to find the entry and exit points of the tunnel because everything has been covered by mud," Basnet said. "Our first priority is rescuing the stranded people." Videos of the disaster showed floodwaters destroying buildings, bridges and vehicles as people ran in front of the stories-high torrent.
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