Key events

The US state department is aware of Americans impacted by the floods in Nepal and is closely tracking the situation and stands ready to provide assistance.

The embassy is working closely with local tour agencies and local authorities to assist Americans in the affected areas.

US citizens in the affected areas have been urged to monitor local news, follow the emergency instructions provided by local authorities, and enroll in STEP.state.gov to receive important emergency information.

US citizens who need urgent assistance related to the Rasuwa flooding should call the US Embassy at +977-1-423-4000. For local search-and-rescue assistance or call Nepal’s disaster hotline at 1234.

Official figures suggest at this stage that at least 291 foreigners are among the missing.

Hikers and climbers from around the world flock to the Himalayan nation to test themselves on some of the world’s highest peaks, Mount Everest among them.

Here are the latest numbers:

- India -

According to the Nepal Tourism Board, 142 nationals from neighbouring India are missing.

The missing Indians were in the country with three travel agencies: Samrat Tours + Travels, Leaf Holiday and Himalayan Glacier.

- Ukraine -

Ukraine’s foreign ministry said Nepal’s Tourist Police had informed them that they considered 53 Ukrainian nationals to be missing.

They included a group of 46 Ukrainian tourists with whom the authorities in Nepal had lost contact, the ministry added.

- Malaysia -

Seventeen Malaysians travelling with Fishtail Tours + Travels were missing in the floods, the board said.

Malaysia’s foreign ministry said its embassy in Kathmandu had received reports from travel agencies suggesting they had lost contact with 11 Malaysian nationals believed to be in the Rasuwa district.

- United Kingdom -

Twelve UK citizens with the Alpine Eco Trek agency are unaccounted for, the tourism board said.

- South Korea -

South Korean officials confirmed eight hydropower workers are out of contact in the Rasuwa district following the floods.

- South Africa -

Four South Africans travelling with the same Alpine Eco Trek agency as the missing British citizens were missing, according to the tourism board.

- United States -

Three US citizens, also with Fishtail Tours + Travels, are unaccounted for, the board said.

- Portugal -

A Portuguese woman is missing in the floods, the country’s foreign ministry told AFP.

- Australia -

One Australian with Kathmandu Holiday Tours + Travel is missing, according to the board.

- Netherlands -

A Dutch citizen travelling with the same company as the missing Australian is also unaccounted for, the board added.

- Italy -

The Italian foreign ministry said two of its nationals and their guide are stranded upstream from a landslide but are being helped.

The ministry is aware of 90 Italian citizens currently in Nepal and Tibet, but does not know if any might have been affected.

- Nationalities unconfirmed -

Several of the tour groups also announced missing foreigners whose nationalities had not been confirmed.

They included 77 with Trekkers Society, 26 with Kailash Journey and eight with Richa Tours + Travels.

- Nepal -

The Nepali tourism board also announced that, in addition to the unaccounted-for foreigners, a total of 93 Nepalis were missing.

Canada’s PM Mark Carney said “Canada stands ready to provide support.”

He wrote on X: “The flash floods along Nepal’s Bhotekoshi River are absolutely devastating.

“Canadians are thinking of all those in distress right now, those who have lost a loved one, and all those who are still waiting for answers.

Our government is closely following the situation and asking all Canadians in the region to register with the ROCA system as soon as possible.”

China has activated its emergency response with its armed forces initiating “full-scale rescue operations” after the floods and mudslide caused “severe casualties at China’s border port of Gyirong”.

Its response included 30,000 “relief supplies” including tents, stoves, clothing, quilts, and fold beds in addition to 120m yuan (around £13m) for post-disaster recovery.

Climate experts at the Kathmandu-based International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development said an avalanche from a glacier likely caused Wednesday’s flash flood.

“Hydrological observations indicate the exceptional speed and magnitude of the flood wave,” they said in an emailed statement, noting that water levels at one point on the Trishuli river rose by as much as nine meters (27 feet) over half an hour.

The Lhende Khola River, a tributary of the Bhotekoshi, had maximum flooding, they said.

“The Lhende Khola has flooded twice in 14 months, this time triggered by an ice rock avalanche from a glacier on the Nepal side that blocked the river and released a sudden surge downstream,” said Saswata Sanyal, a disaster risk reduction specialist at the climate research group.

He noted the importance of early warnings in “a warming Himalaya.”

The region saw similar flash floods in August last year, when a glacial lake in Tibet overflowed because of high temperatures. Nine people were killed, and critical infrastructure, including a bridge connecting Nepal and China, was damaged.

WHO 'stands in solidarity' with Nepal, says director-general, and offers aid

Keely Aouga

The World Health Organization (WHO) has said it “stands in solidarity” with Nepal and is working closely with Nepal’s Ministry of Health to assess Nepal’s urgent relief and resource needs.

Director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said in a post on X: “My thoughts are with the people impacted by the flash flood and mudslide that hit the Nepal-China border this morning.

“@WHONepal has mobilized and dispatched essential emergency medical supplies, and provide field-level care to the affected communities.”

Further, the WHO shared in a statement: “As part of the immediate response, WHO has mobilized and dispatched essential emergency medical supplies, including medicines and multipurpose tents, to help sustain the delivery of critical health services and provide field-level care to affected communities.”

As the full scope of damage continues to be assessed, “WHO remains committed to supporting the Government of Nepal’s response and recovery efforts,” the statement adds.

Red Cross allocates funding to support Nepal in response to flooding

Keely Aouga

The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) is releasing nearly 1m Swiss francs ($1.2m USD) in emergency funding to support Nepals’s response to the severe flooding disaster.

In a statement, the IFRC shared that funding will supporting the Nepal Red Cross with emergency funding, operational coordination and technical support.

“The priority now is to reach affected communities and get assistance to people who have lost their homes, suffered injuries or have been cut off,” said the IFRC head of delegation for Nepal, David Fisher.

The release of emergency funding means the Nepal Red Cross can act immediately while assessments continue. We are closely monitoring the situation and are ready to provide additional support if needs increase. We will not forget support for their long-term recovery either, since entire villages and market areas have been wiped out.

Nepal search and rescue efforts to continue overnight

Keely Aouga

The office of Nepal’s prime minister said search and rescue efforts by the country’s army will continue overnight, the BBC reported.

According to a statement obtained by BBC, 1,697 personnel have been deployed, while 656 have been kept on standby for additional operations.

A large number of people stranded above Timure will be evacuated by air on Thursday morning, the statement adds.

India 'stands with Nepal' in flood relief efforts, says minister

Keely Aouga

India’s external affairs minister, Subrahmanyam Jaishanka, shared that India is supporting relief efforts in Nepal, via a social media post.

“Dispatched 10 tonnes of HADR assistance and essential medicines to support Nepal’s response to the devastating floods,” Jaishanka said. “In face of this challenge, India stands with Nepal and its people.”

Keely Aouga

President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, offered assistance to relief and rescue efforts in Nepal amidst floods that have killed at least 157 people.

“My thoughts are with all those affected, especially the families who have lost loved ones or are still waiting for news,” Von der Leyen shared in a post to social media.

“Copernicus [the EU’s satellite service] has been activated to help map the affected areas in Nepal and support the response on the ground. We stand ready to mobilise further European assistance,” the posts concludes.

Here are some of the latest images coming through on the news wires in the aftermath of the appalling flash flood.

Houses and trucks lie deluged in sludge after flash floods at Trishuli Bazar in Nepal’s Nuwakot district on 26 August 2026. Photograph: Prakash Mathema/AFP/Getty Images

Rescued flood affected people wait outside an army camp in Nepal’s Nuwakot district on 26 August 2026. Photograph: Prakash Mathema/AFP/Getty Images

A flood affected victim receives treatment at a hospital in Nepal’s Nuwakot district on 26 August 2026. Photograph: Prakash Mathema/AFP/Getty Images

An aftermath view of flash floods and mudslides along the Trishuli River in Nuwakot, on 26 August 2026. Photograph: Safal Prakash Shrestha/ZUMA Press Wire/Shutterstock

The day so far

Keely Aouga

• At least 157 people have been killed and hundreds, including foreign tourists, are missing after deadly flash floods on the Nepal-Tibet border on Wednesday. An avalanche of ice and rock triggered massive flash floods that swept through parts of Nepal, causing widespread damage to villages and infrastructure.

• Among the missing are 33 British nationals, with hundreds of foreign nationals still unaccounted for. “A preliminary agency-wise record received from tourism and travel companies has identified 384 travellers, including 291 foreign nationals and 93 Nepali nationals, who were reported missing from the affected areas,” said the Nepal Tourism Board, noting authorities were working to verify the travellers’ whereabouts.

• New analysis indicates there was no earthquake prior to flash flooding, according to the US Geological Survey. Despite initial reports of this natural disaster being preceded by an earthquake, further analysis indicates that a landslide preceded the powerful flash flooding and there was no earthquake, the USGS said.

• Experts warned of a possible second flood. “With a blockage still lodged upstream on the Nepal-China border river, authorities warn a second flood may occur,” Qianggong Zhang, head of climate and environmental risks, at the Kathmandu-based International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development, said in comments reported by Reuters.

• Chinese president Xi Jinping urged “all-out” search efforts for the missing, as well as stronger monitoring and early warning systems to prevent secondary disasters. Chinese state broadcaster CCTV said authorities had deployed at least 574 rescuers to the Gyirong land crossing.

• Nepal’s PM urged the nation to “stand together” after the disaster. Balendra Shah urged the Himalayan nation to stand united in a post on social media: “Please be patient. The government takes full responsibility for your rescue, treatment, food and shelter. In times of such a disaster, we all need to stand together.”

Police say 157 bodies recovered

Nepal police have given an update that 157 bodies have been recovered from the disaster.

Police said bodies had been recovered in the following areas:

• Rasuwa — 3

• Nuwakot — 13

• Dhading — 27

• Chitwan — 64

• Gorkha — 19

• Tanahun — 9

• Nawalparasi East — 22

They also said that 49 injured people were in hospital receiving treatment, and that so far more than 3,300 police officers had been deployed.

New analysis indicates there was no earthquake prior to flash flooding, says US Geological Survey

Further analysis indicates that a landslide preceded the powerful flash flooding on the Nepal-Tibet border and there was no earthquake, according to the US Geological Survey (USGS).

“This event was initially reported as a magnitude 4.4 earthquake,” the update on the USGS website reads. “Additional analysis of long period seismic waves indicate that the seismic energy was instead generated by a landslide.”

As we reported earlier, Nepali officials initially pointed to a possible earthquake in the region minutes before the landslide and flash flooding.

UK prime minister Andy Burnham has said his government will do “everything we can” to help British nationals affected by the flash flooding disaster on the Nepal-Tibet border.

There are 33 Britons among the hundreds of foreign nationals missing.

“These scenes emerging from along the Nepal-China border are devastating,” Burnham said in a statement. “My thoughts are with all those affected, including the families and loved ones of British nationals missing in this tragedy.”

He added: “We will do everything we can to support British nationals impacted in the region and are in touch with the relevant authorities to offer support.”

He urged Britons in the region to follow guidance from local authorities as well as travel advice from the UK government.

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CCTV footage from the border between Nepal and China shows a mudslide engulfing a crossing point.

People were seen attempting to flee moments before buildings and vehicles were submerged in mud and water in Tibet’s Gyirong County.

Drone footage of flash floods show severe damage to villages along the banks of the Bhote Koshi River in Nepal.

Warning: Some viewers may find the following footage distressing.

33 Britons among the missing in Nepal

The Press Association is now reporting that 33 Britons are among the foreign nationals missing after the flash flooding on the Nepal-Tibet border.

Foreign secretary Ed Miliband said: “I am deeply concerned to hear of the flash floods on the Nepal-China border.

“All my thoughts are with those affected and with British nationals in the area and their relatives here at home.”