Hundreds of travellers are missing, including at least 291 foreign tourists, after a flash flood on the Nepal-Tibet border
At least 18 people have been killed in Nepal - among the preliminary list of the missing are more than 100 people from India and 12 from the UK, according to its tourist board
Chinese state media is also reporting "major casualties" in Tibet, which is controlled by China
Verified videos from Nepal show a bridge being swept away and multi-storey buildings collapsed by the force of floodwaters
Other images show houses partially submerged after muddy floodwater swept through Nepal's Nuwakot district
Nepal's foreign minister says preliminary reports show it may have been caused by an earthquake triggering an avalanche, which lead to flash floods
Dramatic images show rescue efforts under way with an older woman being transported to safety in Trishuli Bazar, Nuwakot district.
In one picture, she sits alongside rescuers in the scoop of a digger.
In another, police officers carry her to safety in their arms.
Image source, EPA
Image source, ReutersEight South Korean nationals are currently "uncontactable" following the flash flood, according to South Korea's foreign ministry.
The ministry says those missing were constructing a hydropower plant in the area.
It adds thtat another 10 South Korean nationals are stranded in the area and awaiting rescue.
The Nepalese government has sent a helicopter to rescue them, according to the ministry.
A spokesman for Nepal's army says 88 flood survivors have been rescued so far, with troops trying to rescue another 115 from the village of Mailung.
Rajaram Basnet tells the BBC that 15 helicopters have been mobilised for search and rescue operations.
The Ministry of Home Affairs in Nepal says huge loss of life and property is reported in Timure, Syabrubesi and Betrawati.
It says the flood caused damage to the Trishuli hydropower project and swept away bridges in different places.
Image source, EPAAt least 18 have died and hundreds are missing after a flash flood hit Nepal and Tibet earlier today. Here's what we know:
About 400 tourists - including 291 foreigners - are reportedly missing, the head of Nepal Tourism Board (NTB) tells BBC Nepali.
Most of them were bound for Kailash Mansarovar in Tibet.
"The figure is being updated as reports continue to come in from tour operators running Tibet-bound packages for rescues," says Hikmat Singh Ayer, the board's acting CEO.
Those unaccounted for include more than 100 Indians, 17 Malaysians, 12 Britons, four South Africans, and nationals from the United States, Australia, and the Netherlands.
The flood-affected route also serves as a key gateway to Langtang National Park trekking and Gosainkunda, a holy lake on the lap of mountains, where people pay homage during the Rakshabandhan festival which occurs this Friday.
Nepal police have published a statement saying that 18 people had been confirmed dead by 15:45 local time (10:00 GMT).
One man was found dead in Rasuwa, seven people in Nuwakot, six in Dhading and four in Gorkha, the statement says.
We're now starting to get pictures from Tibet, where CCTV footage captures a wall of mud and water hitting the border checkpoint buildings at Gyirong.
The flash flood and mudslide partially submerged villages in an area popular with trekkers.
Image source, Reuters
Image source, Reuters
Image source, ReutersChinese state media outlet CCTV is reporting "major casualties" from a mudslide at a trade hub on the Tibetan side of the shared border.
China's President Xi Jinping is urging "all-out" search efforts for the missing, as well as stronger monitoring and early warning systems to prevent secondary disasters.
The Chinese government has also instructed personnel to go to Tibet - which is controlled by China - for search and rescue missions.
Nepal police tell the BBC that 17 bodies have been discovered in various districts following the floods on Wednesday morning.
As we've been reporting, hundreds are also missing including tourists.
Image source, XBy Emma Pengelly
Verified videos from Nepal show a bridge being swept away and multi-storey buildings collapsed by the force of floodwaters, and the aftermath of a town with many buildings destroyed.
BBC Verify has located the clips to the Trishuli Bazaar area of Nuwakot District in Bagmati Province, about 16 miles (25km) to the north-west of Kathmandu.
The video shows the river Trishuli suddenly becoming swollen by enormous amounts of water, which appears to have significantly increased in volume and speed and filled with sediment.
About 40 seconds into the clip, the weight of the flash flood rips the bridge off its supports and carries it swiftly downriver. A few seconds later, several buildings also collapse.
The second verified video, filmed from the same location, shows the devastating aftermath. The river’s level has risen significantly, and trees and many building visible in the earlier video have been ripped away.
It is not clear exactly how many have been destroyed, but many buildings near the riverbank have disappeared, partially collapsed or are caked in sediment from the flood’s force.
Image source, X
Image source, EPAPictures show brown, muddy floodwater sweeping through Nuwakot district - one of the areas affected by the flash flooding.
Houses are partially submerged and people can be seen wading through flooded streets. On the picture below, what seems to be a tractor and other equipment can be seen covered in muddy water.
Image source, Reuters
Image source, EPA
Image source, Getty ImagesAn earthquake hit the area at around 08:37 local time, Nepal's foreign minister Shishir Khanal tells parliament, citing preliminary information.
He says the earthquake then triggered an avalanche, which in turn resulted in flash floods. He notes that teams are still verifying the information.
Khanal says that as well as Nepal, China is also experiencing "huge damage".
He says Nepal is co-ordinating with China. So far, 26 police personnel, nine armed police personnel and 44 military personnel are missing.
Officials from customs and immigration are also missing, he adds.
There has also been huge damage on road, bridges, communication and hydropower infrastructures. Rasuwa and Nuwakot were worst affected districts, he adds.
As we’ve reported 384 travellers are "reported missing", including 93 Nepali nationals and 291 foreign nationals.
According to the Nepal Tourism Board, the foreign nationals include:
Image source, Getty ImagesHouses partially submerged along a riverside after flash floods at Trishuli Bazar in Nepal's Nuwakot district
Image source, EPAAn aerial view of damaged homes in Trishuli Bazar in Nuwakot district, Nepal
Yee Liang, a Chinese businessman based in Kathmandu, Nepal, says his logistics company has seven container trucks in the area of the flash flood, which are all staffed by Nepalese employees.
"We have lost contact with all of them. There is no signal, so we cannot reach anyone," he tells the BBC.
Yee says that as far as he knows, there was no warning.
"There were occasional mudslides and landslides, especially in the rainy season, but this one seems much more serious," he adds.
On the Tibetan side, Guan Daoxuan in Sichuan province tells the BBC he lost contact with his wife late on Wednesday morning.
She works for a state-run construction company involved in building roads and bridges in Tibet.
Guan said Nepalese authorities had tried to send a helicopter to inspect the area because road access had been cut off, but strong winds were making it difficult for the aircraft to reach the site.
Hundreds of people are missing following a flash flood in the Bhote Koshi river along the Nepal-Tibet border.
In an update shared on X, the Nepal Tourism Board says it has identified 384 travellers as missing in total, including 291 foreign nationals and 93 Nepali nationals.
It says it is "working to verify" the "whereabouts and safety status" of those travelling through the region.
The flood hit early on Wednesday in Rasuwa, north of Nepal's capital Kathmandu.
We'll bring you more on this story. soon from our teams across the region.
