At least 95 people have been killed in Nepal, and hundreds of tourists are missing, after a massive flash flood and mudslide on the Nepal-Tibet border
The missing tourists include more than 100 from India, 54 from the US, and 33 from the UK, according to Nepal's tourist board. The area is popular with pilgrims and trekkers
Dozens of police officers and army personnel are also missing, as well as power workers. My family was swept away in front of me, one woman tells us - she and her son survived by climbing to a rooftop
In Tibet, Chinese state media report three dead and 265 missing. CCTV from Tibet shows a wall of water and mud hitting buildings at a border crossing
Chinese President Xi Jinping is offering personal directives - that usually means an incident is very serious, writes our correspondent in Beijing, Laura Bicker
Nepal's foreign minister says the flood may have been caused by an earthquake triggering an avalanche
Nepal police says 100 people have died as of 20:30 local time (14:45 GMT) due to the flash floods in Rasuwa.
Those include one in Rasuwa, 11 in Nuwakot, 18 in Dhading, 33 in Chitwan, 19 in Gorkha, seven in Tanahun, and 11 in Nawalpur.
Image source, EPA/ShutterstockFurther analysis indicates that a landslide preceded the flash flooding in Nepal and there was no earthquake, says the US Geological Survey (USGS).
"This event was initially reported as a magnitude 4.4 earthquake," it says.
"Additional analysis of long period seismic waves indicate that the seismic energy was instead generated by a landslide."
Earlier, Nepal's foreign minister had told parliament that preliminary information indicated that an earthquake hit Nepal, which then triggered a landslide and resulted in flash flooding.
Image source, EPA/ShutterstockInitial estimates show that roads and bridges worth more than 15bn Nepalese rupees (£72.18m, $98.33m) were damaged by the floods, a government official tells BBC Nepali.
Earlier, we reported that 19 bridges and 40km (25 miles) of road had been damaged.
Vijay Jaisi, head of the Roads Department, also says portable bridges will be installed at sites where bridges collapsed from Thursday.
Earlier, we brought you the latest pictures from Nepal's Nuwakot district, where the Nepalese foreign minister has warned there is still a risk.
Here are some more images from the scene, showing houses and roads submerged in mud, as well as residents examining the extent of the damage.
Image source, AFP via Getty Images
Image source, Reuters
Image source, Reuters
Image source, Getty ImagesAn intensive search and rescue operation is under way across Nepal
Army personnel, police and power workers are among the hundreds missing following devastating flash flooding in Nepal.
In an update earlier, the prime minister's office said the missing included:
Foreign and domestic tourists also form a significant portion of the missing reported so far - with the latest figure now at 579.
As we've been reporting, officials say 95 bodies have been recovered.
Infrastructure has also been hit, with 19 bridges and 40kms (25 miles) of road reported as damaged.
Nepal police have shared a breakdown of the 95 bodies found following the flash flood.
They include one in Rasuwa, 11 in Nuwakot, 18 in Dhading, 33 in Chitwan, 16 in Gorkha, five in Tanahun and 11 in Nawalpur.
Police say they are working to move households at risk to safe places and carry out rescue and search operations.
We are receiving regular updates from Nepalese authorities, and these numbers are likely to change.
Image source, ReutersEarlier, the BBC spoke to the country director of Save the Children, which has deployed teams to support in the aftermath.
Tara Chettry says the worrying factor is that key infrastructure, including hydropower facilities, has been destroyed.
"This can have a ripple effect as bridges and roads are damaged," she adds.
Meanwhile, Care International's Nepal director Mona Sherpa says the flooding sparks concerns of waterborne diseases given the damage to sanitation infrastructure.
Sherpa says her charity's relief efforts will prioritise those most vulnerable, including women, girls, older people and those with disabilities.
Gabriela Pomeroy
Live reporter
Image source, Sonam DorjeeI have just spoken to Sonam Dorjee, a trekking guide for international tourists who lives in the village of Rasuwa Syafru Besi in Nepal's Rasuwa district.
Sonam says his village was hit by the flood at 09:00 local time (04:00 BST). Luckily, Sonam had left an hour earlier to drive to Kathmandu for a planned visit.
But his sister, Dechen Tamang, is missing, along with her husband and several other family members.
Sonam says he heard sounds of the floods as he drove away from the village.
"It sounds like an earthquake," he says. "My house has collapsed... I have seen a photo."
He describes the flood as "sudden and devastating".
"Many survivors are now left without homes and they need emergency rescue and evacuation, as well as food, temporary accommodation and medical support."
He is praying his sister may be found alive. “There is a 10% chance we hope," he says.
Phanindra Dahal
BBC Nepali, Kathmandu
The number of missing tourists now stands at 579, according to the latest figures confirmed by Nepali police.
Of the missing tourists, 466 are foreign nationals from 28 different countries.
One hundred and thirteen of the missing tourists are Nepalese, 54 are from the US and the number of missing UK nationals remains at 33 people.
Mark Poynting
Climate and science reporter
It’s difficult to say exactly what has caused the flooding at this early stage, but some details are starting to emerge.
“Most people think of flash floods as being caused by heavy rainfall, but in Nepal and Tibet, as in many other high-mountain regions, they can also result from complex chains of hazards,” says Prof Liz Stephens of the University of Reading.
The working theory in this case is that an ice avalanche was the trigger.
Large volumes of ice and rock would have added to the water already in the river and could have generated a sudden surge in river levels.
The avalanche could also have temporarily blocked the river at a narrow section, creating a dam and allowing water to build up behind it.
When the dam fails “it can cause a sudden, devastating release of water and sediment downstream,” Prof Stephens says.
An earthquake was also recorded in the region at a similar time to the floods.
It’s not yet clear what role that played and whether it triggered the avalanche itself or released water that had already been trapped behind the landslide dam.
Kalpana Malla from Nuwakot district says the flood "took everything" from her
The BBC has been hearing from survivors of the flash flood.
"My family members were swept away by the flood in front of my eyes," says Kalpana Malla from Nepal's Nuwakot district.
She says her father, mother, sister and her sister's children were all swept away.
"They could not escape the flood; there was no chance at all," she says. "This flood took everything, but my son and I climbed the rooftop of a house and survived but couldn’t explain how."
Her son, Sugam Malla, says he saved his mother by pulling her hand.
"Before that I had given my phone to my sister to remain safe and contact for help, but she is not reachable now, the mobile is switched off. I am worried she must be swept away."
Another woman, Goma Pandit, says she has lost her buffaloes and all her other cattle.
"My farmland is also swept away. Ten sacks of mustard seeds, tons of corn and rice paddy are all gone. Nothing is left."
These images, taken from footage shared by Nepal police, show the scale of the flash flooding in Nepal.
The authorities don't specify where specifically in Nepal the footage shows.
Police shared the video as part of an update on social media in which they asked members of the public to help each other, and to ignore rumours.
Image source, NEPAL POLICE / X ACCOUNT / HANDOUT
Image source, NEPAL POLICE / X ACCOUNT / HANDOUT
Image source, NEPAL POLICE / X ACCOUNT / HANDOUTChinese state media outlet CCTV says that, as of 20:00 local time (12:00 GMT), the mudslide in Tibet's Gyirong has killed three people and left 265 missing.
Rescue efforts are under way, it reports.
Image source, Getty ImagesSamrat Choudhary, the chief minister of Bihar
Officials in the Bihar state of India, to the south of Nepal, are warning residents to remain alert amid warnings of flooding from the Gandak river.
Samrat Choudhary, the chief minister of Bihar, says that measures such as the monitoring of embankments, night patrolling and deployment of emergency personnel teams have been put in place in several of the state's districts.
The Red Cross - which is warning of waves potentially three metre high waves - says that preparations have intensified in the area since officials met earlier today, and that emergency teams are being deployed to three districts in the state.
The teams have prepared a plan for evacuation if required.
Laura Bicker
China correspondent
The Chinese air force has managed to launch a drone above the Tibetan border town of Gyirong to survey the area hit by a landslide, report state media.
Dramatic footage appears to show the border being struck by a devastating wave of water and mud.
Chinese state media say the People’s Liberation Army has activated its emergency response plan and has begun planning more aerial reconnaissance and airlift missions.
Transport aircraft, helicopters and drones are also on standby.
Image source, ReutersNepal's Prime Minister Balendra Shah says he is left with a "heavy heart" after the country's fatal flash floods.
"The entire nation has been left shocked and deeply distressed" by the loss of life and damage to property, he says in a social media post, calling the disaster "sudden" and "massive".
He offers "heartfelt tributes" and "deepest condolences" to those who have lost their lives and their loved ones.
He says the government "immediately mobilised all its resources" for rescue operations "without delay".
By Charlotte Green
Verified videos of the flash floods show two different bridges over the Trishuli river breaking in half after being struck by debris from other bridges swept away further upstream.
BBC Verify has identified one clip as showing Ghatbesi bridge, which is more than 17 miles (27km) to the west and downriver of the videos from Trishuli town we reported on earlier.
The debris, which includes sections of another bridge, smashes into Ghatbesi bridge, splitting it in two before the flood carries it downstream.
Image source, XThe second video shows the Dhadingbesi bridge, about 4 miles (6km) further to the west downstream of Ghatbesi, also being struck by violent floodwaters carrying the remains of a bridge.
Image source, XThe office of Nepal's prime minister has just confirmed that 95 bodies have been recovered so far.
We reported that figure from Nepal police a short time ago - with rescue and recovery efforts ongoing.
Four hundred and three people are still missing, including 62 Nepalese people and 341 foreign nationals, says the Nepal Tourism Board in its latest update.
It says that 200 of the missing are women and 203 are men.
The foreign nationals are understood to come from 26 different countries.
From India, 133 are missing, while there are 47 missing from the US, and 33 people from the UK.
According to the tourism board, which cited tour operators, most of the passengers were on their way to Mansarovar, near the border of India and Nepal.
Nepal police have published a list of some of the flood victims receiving treatment in various hospitals.
Details for 29 people are provided, including a baby of just three months old, said to be in a "normal" condition.
Two three-year-olds and teens as young as 12 and 14 are also listed. It is unclear how many have been injured and are in hospital overall.
The list includes injury details, with some patients said to have bruises or scratches "all over the body" and others with head injuries. Several are reported "unable to speak".
