According to AFP, rescue forces in Nepal and China on August 30 (local time) are making efforts to search for thousands of missing people after a huge flood swept away mud, like a tsunami, swept through the area, submerging many villages.
In Nepal, officials said at least 675 people have died and 2,498 people are still missing, including hundreds of foreigners.
Xinhua News Agency reported that Tibet (China) recorded 7 deaths and 554 people still missing. Authorities have evacuated 555 stranded tourists and 499 Chinese citizens from the area.
In India, authorities said they have found 7 bodies on rivers flowing from Nepal, believed to be victims of the flood.
Late on August 30, the Nepalese army brought the pipeline into a tunnel at the Trishuli 3A hydropower plant, where workers are believed to be trapped. Nepalese Interior Minister Sudan Gurung said that rescue forces have begun to move air through a small opening and will proceed to dig to bring the rescue team inside the tunnel.
More than 100 workers are believed to be still alive and trapped in the tunnels of the two Trishuli 3A and 3B hydropower plants.
The US State Department said on August 29 (local time) that it would provide $3.6 million in aid to Nepal, a sharp increase compared to the $500,000 announced 2 days earlier.
Nepalese Foreign Minister Shisir Khanal said that the country may need billions of USD to rebuild after the flash flood disaster.
Mr. Khanal emphasized that the urgent priority at this time is to focus on rescuing and saving people, and at the same time call for professional support, including heavy unmanned aerial vehicles and technology to locate trapped people.
The Nepalese Foreign Minister also expressed his desire to be provided with forensic testing equipment for identification and freezing equipment to preserve bodies, because bodies soaked in water can decompose faster.
Also on August 29, the Foreign Ministers of China and Nepal had a phone conversation and discussed sharing satellite data and hydrological data, according to information from the two countries.
In Tibet (China), rescue operations in Cat Long district - the most heavily affected area - are temporarily suspended due to concerns about the risk of continued flooding from a newly formed lake. Currently, 2,141 rescuers are being deployed near this area, of which more than 500 people are present in the most heavily affected area.
However, China Central Television (CCTV) at the end of August 29 quoted information from the Chinese Ministry of Water Resources as saying that this lake is "naturally draining water" and basically "has been drained".
