Nepal has been hit by another devastating flood after raging waters swept away dozens of homes and bridges in the central Gorkha district, leaving at least five people missing and forcing residents to flee riverside settlements.
The flash flood surged along the Budhi Gandaki River early on Sunday, October 11, destroying homes, damaging a hydropower project construction site and cutting off transport links in remote mountainous communities.
Nepal’s National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority coordinated evacuations and issued urgent warnings to residents living along the river and downstream waterways.
The Nepal Army deployed helicopters and ground teams to rescue stranded people and assess the destruction. Authorities reported rescuing 49 people during the initial response, including a foreign national whose identity was not disclosed.
No deaths had been confirmed in the initial reports, although officials continued to search for missing people and assess the full extent of the damage.
The disaster struck as communities prepared to celebrate Dashain, one of Nepal’s biggest annual festivals, forcing families to abandon their homes during a major period of celebration.
Authorities suspect a landslide near Chumchet in Chumnubri Rural Municipality blocked a tributary of the Budhi Gandaki River before the accumulated water suddenly surged downstream.
Binod Parajuli, a hydrologist with Nepal’s Department of Hydrology and Meteorology, said satellite images showed a large landslide near Chumchet.
“We are examining satellite images. A large landslide is visible around Chumchet. It appears to have occurred yesterday,” Parajuli told The Kathmandu Post.
He said the flooding may have started when water behind the blockage suddenly broke through and rushed into the river system.
Officials also investigated reports of a possible avalanche in the upper reaches of the mountains, but they had not confirmed that explanation.
The precise cause therefore remained under investigation as emergency teams worked to establish where the flood originated and how it developed.
The flooding caused extensive destruction in Chumnubri and neighbouring Dharche rural municipalities.
Local officials estimated that between 35 and 40 houses had been swept away in settlements including Jagat Bagar, Salleri and Ghattikhola. Other buildings faced inundation as floodwaters carried mud, rocks and debris through the river valley.
The torrent also destroyed several bridges that connect isolated communities to markets, schools, health facilities and transport routes.
Among the damaged structures were suspension bridges, a steel bridge at Soti and the bridge at Arughat linking Gorkha and Dhading districts.
The loss of these crossings has made movement more difficult in an area where mountainous terrain already limits road access.
Floodwaters also damaged infrastructure at a hydropower project construction site. Electricity and communications facilities along the river corridor suffered damage, raising concerns about connectivity and access to emergency assistance.
Officials continued to assess the destruction as reports emerged from settlements that rescue teams could not immediately reach.
At least five people, comprising two women and three men, were reported missing in the initial national disaster authority update.
The missing people were reportedly staying in a riverside livestock shelter in the Chumchet area when the flooding struck.
Local reports also described several herders who could not be contacted after travelling between Sirdibas and Chumling. Authorities had not established whether those reports involved the same missing people, leaving the overall number requiring verification.
The Nepal Army, Nepal Police and Armed Police Force joined local authorities in rescue and evacuation operations.
Officials used helicopters to reach people stranded in high-risk areas, while emergency teams on the ground helped residents move away from the riverbanks.
Authorities also distributed warnings through text messages and loudspeakers, urging communities to seek higher ground and avoid approaching the swollen river.
Dharmaraj Uprety, chief executive of Nepal’s National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority, said officials received information about the flooding at around 6:20 a.m. local time.
Authorities sent text-message alerts to downstream communities approximately 20 minutes later, giving residents time to move to safer locations.
Authorities have urged residents to stay away from riverbanks and remain in safer locations while emergency teams monitored conditions.
The latest disaster comes less than two months after catastrophic flooding and landslides along Nepal’s border with China left more than 1,400 people dead or missing in initial reports.
That disaster damaged homes and transport infrastructure and left communities struggling to recover in remote mountainous areas.
