Kathmandu [Nepal], August 28 (ANI): The Nepal Police on Friday said that the authorities involved in rescue operations have recovered 475 bodies, raising the death toll from the devastating Bhotekoshi flood, which occurred on Wednesday, The Kathmandu Post reported.
The Nepal Tourism Board said on Thursday night that 667 tourists and travellers, including 127 Nepal's residents, were still missing in areas affected by the floods.
Earlier on Friday morning, Nepal Police said that 1,545 people were injured and rescued.
Meanwhile, police have issued a fresh alert for floods in the Himalayan country, evacuating people from Trishuli.
A police official told ANI that all forms of work, including the rebuilding of the roads in the region, have halted.
Nepal Police officer P Chaudhary said, "The water level is about to rise, so everyone is being stopped. The vehicles that were engaged in the operation are all returning. They are all coming back. Everyone is being evacuated from there and is being taken to a safe location. All the work has stopped. Even worse flooding is yet to come; that is why everyone is being put on alert."
Earlier today, an earthquake of magnitude 5.1 hit Sichuan in China, prompting a flood alert in Nepal. People in the Trishuli area of Nepal were evacuated again as a heavy flow of water from above has threatened to raise the river's water level, Nepal Police stated.
The earthquake jolted Longchang City, southwest China's Sichuan Province, according to the China Earthquake Networks Centre, CGTN reported.
Issuing an alert, Nepal Police said that a dam on the Tibet side has burst again.
"Information has been received that the water dam on the Tibet side has burst again. Therefore, all security personnel, rescue workers involved in rescue and relief operations, and the general public are requested to remain immediately alert and move to safe locations or notify others," Nepal Police posted on X.
A Cabinet meeting was convened by Nepal Prime Minister Balendra Shah at the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers in Singha Durbar on Friday.
The Nepali Army has intensified rescue operations since early morning to evacuate people trapped inside the tunnel of a hydropower project in Rasuwa following flooding.
Despite the challenging terrain and hazardous conditions, the Army rescue team has so far safely rescued two workers from the tunnel, visuals shared by the Nepal Army showed.
Meanwhile, 21 Tamil Nadu residents rescued from flood-affected areas reached Kathmandu, and Indian Ambassador to Nepal, Naveen Srivastava, enquired about their well-being before their upcoming return to India, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) stated. (ANI)
Nepal: 475 bodies recovered as Bhotekoshi flood death toll rises, rescue ops underway
