Mud and debris hamper rescue as Himalayan glacial flood toll exceeds 900

Rescue teams are struggling through treacherous conditions to reach survivors after a glacial flood swept through villages along the China-Nepal border, with the confirmed death toll now exceeding 900. Nearly 4,500 people remain missing, and authorities have begun mass burials after DNA sampling of unidentified bodies. The disaster also left at least 17 dead in India, while about 100 hydropower workers are feared trapped in tunnels.

Rescue operations involve 20,600 personnel, with more than 3,100 survivors pulled from the disaster zone so far. Teams are using helicopters, rubber dinghies, and heavy equipment to reach stranded victims, while specialized tunnel rescue units from the Indian army assist in digging through sludge to reach approximately 100 trapped hydropower workers. Three bodies have been recovered from two tunnels so far.

The disaster originated from a glacial collapse, which the US Geological Survey identified as the trigger. Survivor accounts describe harrowing escapes, including a worker buried in mud up to his waist who required three helicopter rescue attempts, and a six-year-old girl found with only her head visible who was later reunited with her parents. Officials have begun DNA sampling before mass burials in Chitwan district.