China’s state media says 558 people are missing in Tibet after floods that left hundreds of others also missing in Nepal

China’s Xinhua News Agency says mudslides caused by a glacial collapse in Tibet have left 558 people missing. UDIN DHUNGA, Nepal (AP) — China’s Xinhua News Agency said Thursday that mudslides in Tibet caused by a glacial collapse have left three people dead and 558 missing, while police in Nepal reported at least 162 were killed after massive flash floods in a border area of Nepal and China swept through communities a day earlier.Chinese state broadcaster CCTV reported that 260 of the 558 missing people were foreigners and two villagers were rescued. At least three people were killed as of Thursday morning, it said.Officials in Nepal earlier said 403 people, including 341 foreigners, were reported missing.

Sunil Sharma, a tourism board spokesperson, said 133 were from India on pilgrimage to Mount Kailash in Tibet, a sacred site for Hindus. Also missing were 47 from the United States, 34 from Australia, 33 from Britain and 24 from Canada, he said. The State Department said it was aware of Americans affected.Drone footage showed roads destroyed and buildings buried by thundering water the color of wet cement.The region’s steep valleys are economic lifelines and travel corridors but are precarious when disaster strikes.

Images showed what appeared to be the second floors of buildings in Nepal’s hard-hit Nuwakot district slathered in mud after the torrent rushed by. Debris hung from tree branches and wires, vehicles were buried and some stunned survivors were caked in mud. The floods halted travel in some areas.There was little time for anyone to flee.“When I reached Dhunge bazaar, in half an hour, the flood came and damaged all the market.

People were preparing to go to office then,” resident Shoyam Rajbhandari said. “How many people are missing or dead, we don’t know.”The U.S. Geological Survey first reported a magnitude 4.4 earthquake early Wednesday, about 66 kilometers (41 miles) north of Kathmandu, near the border.

The USGS later updated its analysis to say the seismic event it measured was a magnitude 5.2 glacial collapse that sent debris flowing downstream with catastrophic impact on communities. It said its determination was based on data from nearby seismic stations, long period seismic waves and satellite imagery, and that no earthquake had occurred.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 excep… UDIN DHUNGA, Nepal (AP) — China’s Xinhua News Agency said mudslides Wednesday caused by a glacial collapse in Tibet have left 558 people missing, while police in Nepal reported Thursday morning that at least 162 were killed after massive flash floods in a border area of Nepal and China left hundreds of tourists, workers and others missing after suddenly sweeping through communities and halting travel in some areas.Drone footage showed roads destroyed and buildings buried by thundering water the color of wet cement.The region’s steep valleys are economic lifelines and travel corridors but are precarious when disaster strikes.

BEIJING (AP) — China’s state media says 558 people are missing in Tibet after floods that left hundreds of others also missing in Nepal.