Nepal has completed a search and rescue operation after floods that hit in late August, with the latest death toll at 1 455. At least 5 285 people are missing.
Reuters writes about this.
Another 13 795 people have been rescued. Nepalʼs National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) chief Phanindra Paudel said they are currently looking into options to declare the missing as dead so their families can complete insurance and other legal procedures.
The head of Nepalʼs National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority Dharam Raj Upreti said that the country was suspending active searches for bodies, but would be able to resume rescue operations if necessary.
What happened in Nepal?
On August 26, a flash flood hit Nepal. It was caused by the collapse of a glacier in the Himalayas. A large mass of ice and rocks fell from a mountain about 5 200 meters into a valley.
This caused a powerful mudslide of water, ice, rocks, and soil, which moved along the Lende Khola River toward the Nepal-China border.
The exact cause of the glacier collapse is currently unknown. It was initially attributed to an earthquake, but the US Geological Survey determined that the recorded seismic vibrations were caused by the collapse of ice and rock itself.
The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry noted that 56 Ukrainians were being sought in Nepal and are considered missing. There is still no information about the dead or injured Ukrainian citizens. Ukraine tried to determine the location of the missing using geolocation devices that some of them had with them.
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