Rescue efforts continue as Nepal-China flood death toll surpasses 1,270

Authorities in Nepal use helicopters and zip lines to reach remote flood-stricken villages amid widespread destruction.

People look at photographs of missing people on a wall outside Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital following the deadly flash floods and mudslides, in Kathmandu, Nepal [Athit Perawongmetha/Reuters]

Rescue teams in Nepal are working around the clock to reach workers trapped inside hydropower facilities more than a week after flash floods devastated entire communities in the Himalayas.

Last week, a cascade of rocks, mud and water that scientists believe came from a glacier collapse near the Langtang Lirung mountain peak swept away villages, roads, and bridges in Nepal and Tibet.

list 1 of 3 Death toll from devastating floods in Nepal and China surpasses 1,000

list 2 of 3 Nepal buries unidentified flood victims as families await answers

list 3 of 3 Photos: Nepal begins burying flood victims in mass graves

More than 1,270 people have been killed, and more than 4,700 are still missing, authorities said on Thursday.

Nepal’s National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority (NDRRMA) said 1,252 bodies have been recovered as the total number of missing in the country remained at 4,216. Hundreds of workers are believed to be trapped inside hydropower plants, including some in tunnels, near the country’s border with China.

In neighbouring Tibet, Chinese authorities have reported 21 deaths and 541 people missing.

“We still hope there are some survivors inside,” Sanjay Kc, an officer from the Nepalese army engineering department, said, in front of bulldozers trying to remove huge piles of mud blocking the entrance of a tunnel in the Rasuwa district, one of the worst affected areas in Nepal. “Because it’s a big power house inside, so it’s a big room, and we feel that the whole power house is not flooded,” he told Al Jazeera.

Families of those missing are gathering each morning hoping for news about their loved ones. For many, the wait is excruciating.

“Every day I come here hoping to find my father,” said Pratik Rana, the son of a missing engineer. “But every day at sunset I feel my hope fades away… [A] father is equally important for everyone, but for me he was a precious part of my life.”

In other affected areas, authorities are using all available tools, including zip lines and helicopters, to rescue people trapped in remote villages. The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) estimated floods and mudflows have left at least 2.2 million tonnes of debris.

In the capital Kathmandu, forensic teams are working to identify bodies.

Al Jazeera’s Jessica Washington, reporting from a DNA testing facility in the city, said many of the bodies being found are in a state of decomposition.

“Forensic teams on the ground told us that there are some things that can help with the identification process, such as tattoos and jewellery, but many bodies were found in such a state that it’s very challenging to identify them.”

On Wednesday, the country’s Prime Minister Balendra Shah said authorities would continue searching for survivors while also starting rehabilitation and rebuilding efforts.

Dharma Raj Upreti, chief of the NDRRMA, told the Reuters news agency that about 20,000 houses would have to be rebuilt, including 7,500 that have been destroyed.

“There is no point in rebuilding the houses in the same locations, as that would expose people to the same risks,” Upreti told the news agency, adding that authorities were trying to identify safer areas to relocate the communities and build up new settlements. As of Monday, the UN said more than 3,400 displaced people were living in 27 displacement sites in Nuwakot and Rasuwa, mostly in schools.

Nepali authorities have pointed to the role of major greenhouse gas emitters that have a “historical responsibility to compensate vulnerable nations like Nepal”, said Foreign Minister Shisir Khanal. He added that the government has officially filed a “formal climate compensation claim letter” to international partners.

尼泊尔当局利用直升机和滑索抵达受洪水侵袭的偏远村庄，灾情造成大范围破坏。

在尼泊尔加德满都，人们看着特里布万大学教学医院外墙上张贴的失踪人员照片，这些照片记录了致命的突发洪水和泥石流灾害。[Athit Perawongmetha/路透社]

尼泊尔救援队正在夜以继日地工作，试图营救被困在水电站内的工人。此前，喜马拉雅山脉的山洪暴发摧毁了整个社区，至今已过去一周多。

上周，科学家认为来自朗塘里隆山峰附近冰川崩塌的岩石、泥浆和水流冲毁了尼泊尔和西藏的村庄、道路和桥梁。

尼泊尔和中国毁灭性洪灾死亡人数超过1000人（共3条，此为第1条）

尼泊尔埋葬身份不明的洪灾遇难者，家属仍在等待答案（共3条，此为第2条）

图3（共3张）：尼泊尔开始将洪水遇难者埋葬在万人坑中

当局周四表示，已有超过1270人丧生，超过4700人仍然失踪。

尼泊尔国家减灾风险管理署（NDRRMA）表示，已找到1252具遗体，该国失踪人数仍为4216人。据信，数百名工人被困在靠近中国边境的水电站内，其中一些人被困在隧道中。

据中国当局报告，邻近的西藏已有21人死亡，541人失踪。

“我们仍然希望里面还有幸存者，”尼泊尔陆军工程部门军官桑杰·克西（Sanjay Kc）说道。当时，推土机正在努力清除堵塞拉苏瓦地区（尼泊尔受灾最严重的地区之一）一条隧道入口的大量泥浆。“因为里面是一个大型发电厂，空间很大，我们感觉整个发电厂并没有完全被淹没，”他告诉半岛电视台。

每天早上，失踪者的家属们都会聚集在一起，焦急地等待亲人的消息。对许多人来说，等待的过程无比煎熬。

“我每天都来这里，希望能找到我的父亲，”失踪工程师的儿子普拉蒂克·拉纳说。“但每天日落时分，我的希望都渐渐破灭……父亲对每个人都同样重要，但对我来说，他是我生命中极其珍贵的一部分。”

在其他受灾地区，当局正动用一切可用资源，包括滑索和直升机，营救被困在偏远村庄的民众。联合国开发计划署（UNDP）估计，洪水和泥石流已造成至少220万吨的残骸。

在首都加德满都，法医小组正在努力辨认尸体。

半岛电视台记者杰西卡·华盛顿从该市一家 DNA 检测机构报道称，发现的许多尸体都已处于腐烂状态。

“现场法医小组告诉我们，有些东西可以帮助进行身份识别，例如纹身和珠宝，但许多尸体被发现时的状态使得身份识别非常困难。”

周三，该国总理巴伦德拉·沙阿表示，当局将继续搜寻幸存者，同时启动灾后重建工作。

国家减灾风险管理署署长达摩·拉杰·乌普雷蒂告诉路透社，大约有 20,000 栋房屋需要重建，其中包括 7,500 栋已被摧毁的房屋。

乌普雷蒂告诉通讯社：“在原址重建房屋毫无意义，那样只会让人们面临同样的风险。”他还补充说，当局正在努力寻找更安全的地区安置这些社区，并建设新的定居点。截至周一，联合国表示，努瓦科特和拉苏瓦的27个安置点共收容了3400多名流离失所者，其中大部分居住在学校里。

尼泊尔外交部长希希尔·卡纳尔表示，尼泊尔当局已指出主要温室气体排放国负有“历史责任，必须对尼泊尔等脆弱国家进行补偿”。他还补充说，尼泊尔政府已正式向国际伙伴提交了“正式的气候补偿索赔函”。