A massive flood occurred in the Bhotekoshi River in Rasuwa on Monday night.
According to the District Police Office, Rasuwa, the flood swept away the Miteri Bridge at the Nepal-China border, 7-8 vehicles parked at the customs yard for inspection, and caused damage to the dam of the Rasuwagadhi Hydroelectric Project.
Following the flood, 18 people including three police personnel, six Chinese nationals, and nine civilians are missing, while 55 people have been rescued and seven bodies have been recovered.
Search operations for the missing individuals are still ongoing.
The flood has affected several areas in Rasuwa, including Wards 1, 2, and 3 of Gosaikunda Rural Municipality; Wards 1, 2, 4, and 5 of Amachhodingmo Rural Municipality; Wards 2, 4, and 5 of Uttargaya Rural Municipality; and Ward 1 of Kalika Rural Municipality.
There was no rainfall in the Rasuwagadhi border area on Monday night. However, around 3 a.m., the river’s flow suddenly surged, triggering a flood along with debris.
On the Chinese side, there is a settlement called Lhende. The flood originated from the Lhende River, which is named after the settlement and merges with the Bhotekoshi.
Chief District Officer Arjun Paudel and DSP Hem Shahi of Nepal Police, among others, are heading to the flood-affected site. Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli and Home Minister Ram Bahadur Thapa are also preparing to visit Rasuwa for an on-site inspection.
The sudden flood that hit Gosaikunda Rural Municipality-2 around 4 a.m. on Tuesday caused massive damage.
The flood washed away the Miteri Bridge connecting Nepal and China, severing cross-border connectivity.
Structures along the riverbanks below the bridge were also damaged. Around 4:40 a.m., a charging station on the riverbank was also damaged.
The flood also inundated the dam of the Rasuwagadhi Hydroelectric Project and the customs yard of the Customs Office, Rasuwa, located about 1.5 kilometers from the border. Several containers were swept away, though the exact extent of the damage remains unclear.
Assistant Chief District Officer Dhruva Prasad Adhikari confirmed that 18 people were still missing.
Search teams from Nepal Police, Armed Police Force, and Nepal Army have been mobilized, but no one has been found yet.
Authorities suspect all 18 went missing from the customs yard. Security agencies have already identified the missing persons.
Three of them are police officers: Assistant Sub-Inspector of Police Lal Bahadur Shrestha, and Police Constables Munna Thakur and Lokendra Bohara.
"So far, none of the missing have been found. The search is ongoing. Three of them are police officers," said Assistant CDO Adhikari. "They were engaged in rescue efforts when the flood hit."
It remains unclear exactly when they lost contact.
Meanwhile, a man’s severed leg was found in a river in Uttargaya Rural Municipality, but the rest of his body has not been recovered.
Among the missing are six Chinese nationals working on the customs yard construction: Yu Yue, Li Huachin, Yang Chuan, Yu Hai Hang, Yu Qiao Chui, and Zhou Yong.
Nine Nepali citizens are also missing after the flood. They include Jipan Chaudhary, Santosh Dait, Buddhiram Tharu, Laxminarayan Tharu, and Suresh Tharu of Bardiya, Narendra BK of Baglung, and Phurwa Lama, Govinda Moktan, and Lokman Tamang of Sindhupalchowk. Lama, Moktan, and Tamang are drivers, while the others are employees and workers.
Since they were working on the customs yard construction, they lived on-site. Assistant CDO Adhikari suggested they might have been swept away by the sudden flood while they were sleeping.
"They were staying there for construction work. Some are drivers. It’s possible they were asleep when the flood struck and swept them away," he said. "Other details are still unclear."
He added that it must also be verified whether some went to move vehicles upon learning about the flood. "We need to confirm whether they were trying to move vehicles when it happened. Phone contact has not been possible," he said.
