Missing tally rises to 2,482, including 320 Indians, as disaster toll hits 584

NEW DELHI: At least 584 people were dead and 2,482 missing across Nepal and Tibet by Friday evening after the Bhote Koshi-Trishuli disaster, with Nepal accounting for 579 deaths and 1,924 missing and Tibet reporting five dead and 558 missing. The scale remained fluid, as Nepal Police maintained a higher list of those unaccounted for; tunnel searches continued and large numbers of people remained cut off or out of communication.Rescue teams on both sides of the border were repeatedly forced to reassess and retreat Friday as an unstable barrier lake overflowed into Bhote Koshi river, sent a fresh surge downstream and briefly halting operations. Hours later, another avalanche dumped an estimated 50,000 cubic metres of ice debris. Satellite images later showed an even more worrying development — a second, larger upstream lake was still growing and had no visible outlet.MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said 320 Indian nationals in Nepal remained “uncontactable” on Friday, up from 290 earlier, while around 100 persons of Indian origin holding other nationalities were also out of contact. Jaiswal said it was a “dynamic situation”. India had not confirmed any deaths by Friday evening and MEA said it was seeking clarity from Nepalese authorities.MEA said at least 84 nationals had been rescued in Nepal — 63 workers from Trishuli-1 and 21 pilgrims from Tamil Nadu. The group of 21 reached Delhi on Friday. “First, good news: 21 Indian nationals who had yesterday arrived in Kathmandu from the area which was affected by the flood have landed in Delhi,” Jaiswal said.In addition, MEA said 149 Indians crossed into Nepal from Tibet on Friday and around 400 more were safe on the Chinese side.In Nepal, the official missing count nearly doubled within hours to close to 2,000 as authorities added fresh lists from devastated settlements, hydropower projects and tourism groups. The country’s National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority (NDRRMA) said 4,451 people had been rescued. India said 320 of its nationals in Nepal remained uncontactable.The rapidly changing figures reflected the enormous task of reconciling reports from families, district administrations, employers, tour operators and security agencies as rescuers reached previously inaccessible areas.Rescuers fight tough terrain to reach those trapped in tunnelsHydropower sites accounted for an extraordinary share of those unaccounted for. NDRRMA said 933 people linked to projects remained missing, while the ministry of energy said reports from promoters indicated that more than 1,000 workers had at one stage lost contact. “There are reports that more than a thousand people working on hydropower projects have lost contact,” ministry spokesperson Mohan Shakya said.The largest concentration was at the Korean-funded 216MW Upper Trishuli-1 project, where workers had taken shelter inside tunnels as floodwater and debris destroyed access routes. Initial information indicated around 400 people were inside the tunnel and another 176 outside were uncontactable. Officials said about 40 Indians and eight Koreans working at the project were unaccounted for; around 100 Chinese workers had also been employed there, with some rescued.Project liaison officer Giri Adhikari said debris had entered the roughly 10km tunnel. “There should be no shortage of oxygen inside. There is a shortage of food and water. If rescued in time, it is estimated that those inside are still alive,” he said. With roads and tunnel approaches washed away, Adhikari said rescuers could reach some access points only by being lowered from helicopters along the cliff.Other hydropower projects also reported large numbers “out of contact”. Officials listed 93 at Rasuwagadhi Hydropower Project alone.In Tibet’s Gyirong County, China reported five people dead and 558 missing, including 260 foreign nationals. Beijing had not released a nationality-wise breakdown of the missing foreigners as yet.Chinese authorities separately said they had moved all stranded tourists out of the accessible Gyirong area. A total of 555 tourists were evacuated, while 499 villagers and construction workers affected by the disaster were moved to shelters or other safe locations. Xinhua said no tourists remained stranded in the areas covered by that evacuation operation, although hundreds of people remain officially missing in the wider disaster zone.Catch the latest World News and Live updates. Download the TOI app.