At least 353 people are dead and 826 missing after catastrophic floods and mudslides swept through communities along the Nepal-China border. The disaster began Wednesday following a glacial collapse and by Thursday, rescue teams were still searching a wide stretch of the Himalayan region. Hikmat Singh Ayer, CEO and senior director of the Nepal Tourism Board, told CBS News that at least 65 Americans were among the missing foreign nationals, nearly double the number reported the day before.
Local reports from Nepal's National Emergency Operation Center said the missing included 113 Nepali tourists, 85 security personnel from the army and police, and 161 residents. The worst-affected districts were identified as Nuwakot and Rasuwa, where authorities ramped up operations Thursday.
Chinese state broadcaster CCTV reported separately that 558 people were missing in Tibet, including 260 foreigners, and that at least three people had been killed on that side of the border. Two villagers were rescued, CCTV said.
A subsequent update from Nepal's Tourism Board said 27 foreign nationals had been rescued from the flood zone in the Rasuwa district, including two U.S. nationals identified as a man and woman in their 50s.
Flash floods destroyed villages, roads, bridges, and power plants. Drone footage taken Wednesday showed buildings buried under thick gray water and roads completely washed out. Al Jazeera's Ramyata Limbu reported from outside a Kathmandu hospital where injured survivors were being airlifted, with people lining up outside to report missing family members.
The U.S. State Department said it was closely monitoring the situation and sending an adviser to the region. It also announced a $500,000 grant to Catholic Relief Services. The U.S. Embassy in Nepal said it was working to account for affected American citizens, though it noted that communications in the region remained severely disrupted. The embassy urged any U.S. nationals still in the area to contact their families, hotels, guides, or tour companies by any means available.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio posted on social media Wednesday that the department "stands ready to support the government of Nepal with needed humanitarian assistance."
The embassy also posted its "heartfelt condolences to the families and loved ones of those who lost their lives in the devastating floods."
Search and rescue operations were continuing Thursday across both the Nepali and Tibetan sides of the border, with multiple agencies and military units involved.
