NewzRescue teams continued to work on Friday through mud and debris in areas devastated by a flash flood on the Himalayan border between Nepal and China.Hundreds of people remain missing as the death toll climbed above 570 and Nepali and Chinese authorities warned of further risk of flooding from a new lake that has formed upstream following Wednesday’s disaster. Those still in the potentially affected areas at risk were warned to move to safer ground.More than 3,700 people have been rescued in Nepal so far, but 1,924 people remain unaccounted for in the country. China’s state media previously said 558 people were missing on the Chinese side.Nepal’s National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority said the latest death toll had risen to 579.China state broadcaster CCTV said five people had died in flooding along Tibet’s border with Nepal and 558 remained missing.
Tibet is a region in China.Here is the latest:China sends rescue teams to disaster areaChina has sent two rescue teams, comprising 21 people and a search dog, to the disaster site.The deployment represents the first professional rescue teams to reach the disaster’s hardest-hit area, China’s Ministry of Emergency Management said on Friday.Footage aired by China's state broadcaster CCTV showed a rescuer suspended from a drone being lowered onto the bank of the fast-flowing Gyirong River to help deploy an inflatable boat. A destroyed truck and a bridge pier could be seen nearby.A separate team of 13 experts also later reached the area safely, according to the ministry.Nepal raises death toll as number of missing doublesNepal’s disaster management authority said the death toll has risen to 579.The agency said the number of people reported missing has doubled to 1,924, as more local residents were added to the tally.The number of foreign nationals reported missing remains at 517.Nepal does not need foreign search and rescue teams ‘for now’Nepal said it does not require foreign search and rescue teams at this time.Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lok Bahadur Poudel Chhetri said domestic personnel are managing the immediate crisis but remain open to targeted international technical support.“Our security agencies are handling the rescue operations well, so for now, we do not need any rescue teams from other countries,” he said. “But it doesn’t mean that we don’t need any kind of support.
Nepali police later put the number of deaths higher at 553.China state broadcaster CCTV said five people had died in flooding along Tibet’s border with Nepal and 558 remained missing. Tibet is a region in China.Here is the latest:Nepal does not need foreign search and rescue teams ‘for now’Nepal said it does not require foreign search and rescue teams at this time.Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lok Bahadur Poudel Chhetri said domestic personnel are managing the immediate crisis but remain open to targeted international technical support.“Our security agencies are handling the rescue operations well, so for now, we do not need any rescue teams from other countries,” he said. We might need expertise and based on the specific requirements, we will take it.”China says water level of barrier lake dropsThe water level of a barrier lake that was formed in the wake of the floods has fallen, the state broadcaster China Central Television reported, citing data by China’s Ministry of Water Resources.The water level has dropped 10 meters (32 feet) from the high point on Thursday morning, the state broadcaster said.India says 320 citizens remain missingRandhir Jaiswal, Indian External Affairs Ministry spokesman, told reporters that 320 Indian nationals remain uncontactable.He said 96 Indians who were stranded on the Chinese side have crossed over to Nepal by land and efforts were being made to evacuate them.India also will send another flight with relief supplies along with a tunnel rescue team, Jaiswal said.One portable, prefabricated bridge has been sent to Nepal to he…
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