A flash flood hit Nepal’s Manaslu trekking region before dawn on Sunday, destroying nearly 40 homes, six bridges and hydropower facilities. Up to 10 people are unaccounted for, and over 150 foreign tourists are stranded. Text message alerts gave residents time to reach higher ground, and the Army rescued 49 people. Officials ordered evacuations and warned districts downstream.
The disaster came barely 45 days after devastating floods along the Bhote Koshi-Trishuli river, which killed more than 1,450 people and left 5,250 missing. This latest flood struck at about 4am on the Budhi Gandaki, a tributary of the Trishuli, in Chumnubri, roughly 100km west of Kathmandu.
Over 100 foreigners stuck in trekking region
Authorities suspect a landslide temporarily dammed a tributary, letting water and debris pile up until the blockage collapsed, though the exact cause has not been confirmed. Five people, two women and three men who were near the Ungilung river, are still missing, and four to five herders cannot be reached.
The flood wiped out 35-40 houses and a primary school, and another 20-22 houses are under threat. Six bridges were washed away or damaged, isolating remote villages.
The water also destroyed the construction camp and equipment of the 341MW Budhi Gandaki hydropower project at Salleri, which is still under construction. At Arughat, the Budhi Gandaki climbed to 8.4m, well above its 5m danger mark, before the flood took out the monitoring station and cut off water-level data.
Evacuation alerts went out across Dhading, Tanahun, Chitwan and East and West Nawalparasi, telling people along the Trishuli and Narayani rivers to keep away from the banks.
Dharmaraj Uprety, chief executive of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority, said another blockage upstream cannot be ruled out. He added that it remains unclear whether the river has been dammed again or the threat has passed.
According to Uprety, the authority learned of the flood at 6.20am and sent the first SMS warnings at 6.40am. Close to 2 lakh alerts went out in two rounds, urging people to leave riverbanks and vulnerable settlements.
The flood also disrupted the well-known Manaslu trekking circuit at the height of Nepal’s autumn tourist season, damaging trails and suspension bridges. More than 100 foreign tourists are stranded at Jagat, a main gateway to the region, with 17 at Lokpa and another 40 at Chhekampar in the Chum Valley. Bhuvanraj Ojha, a conservation officer with the Manaslu Conservation Area Project, told TOI the tourists are safe and helicopter evacuations are being arranged.
