Two workers rescued after Nepal flood
Two workers were rescued alive in Nepal as searches, family tracing and shelter support continue after the border flood.
Searches, identification work and evacuations are continuing in Nepal and China. All missing-person and casualty figures remain provisional.
Latest timelineTwo workers rescued alive from a tunnel in northern Nepal
Rescuers brought two workers out alive from the Trishuli 3A hydropower tunnel in northern Nepal on 4 September, nine days after the 26 August flood devastated the Bhotekoshi–Trishuli river corridor. Nepal's Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed the rescue and said teams from Nepal, India, China and the Republic of Korea were continuing coordinated tunnel operations.
The disaster-authority bulletin issued at 18:30 NPT on 4 September listed 1,294 recovered bodies and remains and approximately 5,053 people out of contact. Only 96 bodies had been identified and returned to families. These provisional recovery and tracing figures must not be added together: missing-person lists may include people whose remains have been recovered but not yet identified.
The same evening update recorded 13,095 people rescued and 4,627 people staying in 37 holding centres across Rasuwa, Nuwakot and Dhading districts in Nepal. More than 21,000 Nepali Army, Nepal Police and Armed Police Force personnel were mobilised. Safe access, identification, shelter and medical support remain central to the response.
The evening out-of-contact total of about 5,053 replaces the 5,083 stated in the previous day's bulletin. The reported district and foreign-national components are unchanged, so the revised sum does not establish that 30 people have been found. Different agencies also publish separate records and reporting cut-offs while verification continues.
Chinese rescue authorities separately reported 31 deaths and 531 people missing at Gyirong Port, in China's Xizang Autonomous Region, as of 18:00 CST on 4 September. The port is in Gyirong County, Xigaze, across the border from Rasuwagadhi in Nepal's Rasuwa district. Road access to the port was reported largely restored on 2 September, but unstable slopes and other hazards continue to complicate operations.
A flight carrying 84 metric tonnes of UNICEF humanitarian supplies arrived in Kathmandu on 4 September with European Union support. The cargo includes water-treatment supplies, hygiene kits, tents, medical equipment, children's winter clothing and learning materials. UNICEF says trucks are carrying relief to Rasuwa, Nuwakot and Dhading, where damaged services and crowded shelters leave families exposed to disease and protection risks.
The United Nations and humanitarian partners also launched a US$49.6 million appeal on 4 September to assist more than 84,000 people over four months. Supporting Nepal's government-led response, the plan covers cash assistance where markets function, shelter before winter, water and sanitation repairs, mobile healthcare, food and protection services.
Access, shelter and family tracing are immediate priorities
The flood crossed an international border and travelled through steep terrain where broken roads, bridges, power systems and communications can isolate settlements, border workers and travellers.
Search and family links
Teams need safe access to Timure, Syabrubesi, downstream communities and Gyirong Port. Families need one reconciled picture that clearly separates people out of contact, confirmed missing, identified casualties and survivors.
Safe shelter and protection
Evacuated households and stranded travellers need secure accommodation, lighting, privacy, accessible facilities, protection support and clear information about when movement or return is safe.
Water, sanitation and health
UNICEF said on 3 September that at least 22,000 children urgently needed safe drinking water, sanitation and hygiene support. Damaged water systems and toilets, alongside crowded shelters, raise disease risks. Water treatment, repairs, temporary sanitation and continued access to medicines are priorities.
Education and child protection
Damaged classrooms, lost learning materials and schools used as shelters disrupt education beyond the buildings directly hit by the flood. Temporary learning, psychosocial care and family reunification remain priorities. UNICEF's latest supply flight includes learning materials and clothing for children.
How the flood and response developed
Searches continue after two workers are rescued
Following the morning rescue at Trishuli 3A, Nepal's evening disaster-authority bulletin lists 1,294 recovered bodies and remains, about 5,053 people out of contact, 13,095 rescued and 4,627 people in 37 holding centres. Identification is continuing, and recovery and tracing totals may overlap. China separately reports 31 deaths and 531 missing at Gyirong Port as of 18:00 CST.
Tunnel rescue and new relief supplies
Nepal's Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirms that two workers were rescued alive from the Trishuli 3A hydropower tunnel. UNICEF reports the arrival in Kathmandu of 84 metric tonnes of emergency supplies, including water, health, shelter and education materials.
Recovery count reaches 1,259
The evening disaster-authority update records 1,259 bodies recovered, 5,083 people out of contact, 12,038 rescued, 5,384 injured people treated and 3,844 people in holding centres. More than 21,000 security personnel are deployed, while Australia prepares specialist drone support and humanitarian organisations expand shelter, water and protection assistance.
Searches continue as access improves slowly
Nepal's latest disaster-authority balance records 939 deaths and 3,925 people missing, including 639 hydropower workers. Teams continue searching damaged tunnels and downstream riverbanks. In China, emergency crews report that 900 metres of damaged G216 road remain to be reopened towards Gyirong Port.
Nepal reports 788 deaths and 2,502 missing
The national disaster authority issues a higher provisional balance as searches, body identification and family tracing continue. An initial Education Cluster assessment says at least 69 schools were destroyed or damaged, affecting 18,918 enrolled children.
Fresh river rise prompts precautions
Water levels rise again in the Bhotekoshi before receding. Residents in exposed parts of Rasuwa and Nuwakot move to higher ground while a Nepal Army helicopter assesses upper river areas; authorities have not yet confirmed a new damage balance.
Nepal reports 675 deaths and 2,498 missing
The national disaster authority says 7,514 people have been rescued, 219 injured people have received treatment and more than 18,700 security personnel are mobilised. China separately reports 16 deaths and 546 missing at Gyirong Port as of 18:00 CST.
Nepal disaster authority reports 579 deaths
The national balance records 579 deaths and 1,924 people missing. China separately reports five deaths and 558 people missing at Gyirong Port as cross-border searches continue.
Humanitarian appeals and child-impact estimates expand
UNICEF reports at least 17,000 children affected and appeals for US$17.2 million. The IFRC estimates around 93,000 people may be affected and launches a CHF25 million, 24-month emergency appeal. Authorities also monitor an overflowing barrier lake upstream of Gyirong Port.
Nepal Police balance reaches 389
Late reporting citing Nepal Police records 389 bodies recovered across eight districts and 466 injured people rescued. Search and identification work continues.
Nepal death toll reaches 270
Nepal Police figures put the toll at 270, with bodies recovered across eight districts. The national disaster authority reports 826 people missing and 66 people receiving or having received hospital care.
Successive balances show a rapidly rising toll
Reported totals rise through 162 and 177 as search teams recover more bodies downstream and authorities reconcile records.
China activates a national relief response
Authorities confirm deaths and missing people at Gyirong Port, mobilise rescue and engineering teams and dispatch central relief supplies to the affected area.
Nepal Police confirms 95 deaths
Bodies are recovered across seven districts. Twenty people remain unidentified, and search, relief, body-management and road-clearance teams continue work.
Tracing and damage reports widen
The Tourism Board reports hundreds of tourists out of contact. Authorities report severe damage to roads, bridges, hydropower facilities, markets, security posts and settlements.
Sudden flood strikes Rasuwa
A large surge moves through the Bhotekoshi corridor around Timure and Syabrubesi before travelling downstream. Authorities warn communities along the Trishuli to move away from exposed riverbanks.
Scientists examine an avalanche blockage
Initial expert assessments suggest an ice-and-rock avalanche may have blocked the Lhende River before water broke through. Officials stress that the cause is not yet final.
Tracing results, cross-border coordination and cause analysis will shape the next phase
The latest balances were issued while communications, road access and field assessments remained incomplete on both sides of the border.
People out of contact
Nepal's approximately 5,053 out-of-contact records and China's separate 531-person missing balance remain provisional. Family tracing and identification must reconcile survivors, local and workplace lists and recovered remains. A recovery count is not a count of individually identified deaths.
Cause assessment
A glacier collapse and ice-rock avalanche are the leading assessment, but satellite analysis and field evidence are still needed to establish the exact sequence and whether a temporary river blockage amplified the surge.
Road and bridge access
The reopening of road access towards Gyirong Port allows more rescuers and machinery to enter. Engineering checks, slope monitoring and bridge repairs still determine which routes in northern Nepal and across the border can safely carry relief traffic.
Downstream safety
River levels, unstable slopes, damaged electrical equipment and contaminated water remain concerns even as the first surge weakens. Official local warnings should guide movement.
Information used in this report
Nepal's Ministry of Foreign Affairs and National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority; United Nations in Nepal; UNICEF; Save the Children; Bagmati Welfare Society Nepal; Nepal Police and Nepal Army; China's rescue authorities and State Council; Xinhua; Central News Agency; Onlinekhabar; HimalPress; Public Service Broadcasting Radio Nepal; IFRC and Nepal Red Cross Society; and ICIMOD.
Publication and updates
- Published - Original report published.
- Updated - Material report update.
- Updated - Material report update.
- Updated - Material report update.
- Updated - Material report update.
- Updated - Material report update.
- Updated - Material report update.
- Updated - Material report update.
- Updated - Material report update.
- Updated - Material report update.