This is a developing story. Last updated 27 August 2026.
At least 160 people are dead and 403 remain missing after a Nepal flash flood tore through the northern Rasuwa district on Wednesday morning, burying villages, sweeping away bridges and cutting off hundreds of tourists from at least 26 countries. Among the missing are 33 British nationals, including a 13-year-old girl.
Nepal Police confirmed in an operational update that 157 bodies had been recovered from the affected area. Three more deaths were reported on the Chinese side of the border in Tibet’s Gyirong county, where a mudslide hit a cross-border trade hub.
The death toll is expected to rise. Rescue helicopters have been struggling to land in the flood zone because of high water levels and poor weather, and entire settlements along the Bhotekoshi and Trishuli rivers have been wiped out. This is the second catastrophic flood in the same river corridor in 14 months.
The Key Facts
- At least 160 dead (157 recovered in Nepal, 3 in China)
- 403 people missing including 341 foreign nationals from 26+ countries
- 33 British nationals unaccounted for including a 13-year-old girl
- Cause under investigation but an ice avalanche blocking the Lhende River is suspected
- FCDO: follow local authority advice and call (+44) 207 008 5000 for consular help
What Happened in Rasuwa
The Bhotekoshi River flooded at around 8.40am local time on Wednesday 26 August, sending a wall of mud and debris through settlements in Rasuwa’s Gosainkunda Rural Municipality. The surge struck the areas of Timure and Syabrubesi first, then spread downstream into Nuwakot, Dhading and Chitwan districts, destroying concrete bridges, roads and hydropower infrastructure along the way.
Officials reported dry conditions in Rasuwa before the river rose. There had been no heavy rainfall. The flood originated upstream, on the Tibetan side of the border, and hit Nepal with almost no warning. A witness quoted by the Onlinekhabar news portal described hearing a sound “like a volcano erupting” before the water arrived.
Krishna Prasad Humagain, Nuwakot’s assistant chief district officer, told the Kathmandu Post that entire settlements had been destroyed. Dozens of multistoried buildings, trucks and vans were buried under mud. He said there had “never been this much damage in history.”
What Caused the Flood
Nepal’s foreign minister said initial assessments suggest an earthquake triggered an avalanche which caused the flooding. The US Geological Survey recorded a magnitude 4.4 earthquake in Tibet at 8.37am, about 25 kilometres from the Nepal border. Seven minutes later, CCTV cameras at the Gyirong Port border crossing captured the moment a raging wall of mud crashed over buildings several stories high.
This is seriously scary. CCTV footage from Gyirong Port in Tibet, China, directly opposite Nepal’s Rasuwa district.
— Nikhil saini (@iNikhilsaini) August 26, 2026
Professor Rijan Bhakta Kayastha, a climate researcher at Kathmandu University, told the Kathmandu Post that an ice avalanche appears to have blocked the Lhende River on the Nepali side, causing water to build up before it burst downstream. Chinese authorities provided satellite imagery showing debris blocking the river about 20 kilometres upstream of the Miteri Bridge.
A glacial lake outburst has not been ruled out, and scientists say it could take several days to establish a definitive cause.
Who Is Missing
Nepal’s Tourism Board reported 403 people missing, including 341 foreign nationals and 62 Nepali citizens. People from at least 26 countries were in the affected area. Most were on the route to Mount Kailash in Tibet, a sacred Hindu pilgrimage site that draws thousands of visitors every August during the Janai Purnima festival season.
Bhotekoshi Flash Flood SITUATION UPDATE -2 Date: August 26, 2026 Preliminary Details of Missing Tourists
— Nepal Tourism Board (@nepaltourismb) August 26, 2026
Tourism Board spokesperson Sunil Sharma said 133 of the missing were Indian nationals on pilgrimage to Mount Kailash. A further 47 were from the United States, 34 from Australia, 33 from the United Kingdom, 24 from Canada and 19 from Malaysia. Among the 403 missing, 203 are male and 200 female, according to the Tourism Board.
The British Nationals
Tour operator Alpine Eco Trek confirmed that 12 British nationals on its nine-day tour to Mount Kailash had not been located. The group also included two Irish nationals and four South African nationals. Ram Kumar Adhikari, the company’s manager, told the Press Association he had been in contact with his four tour guides until 8.40am, when their phones went offline. At that point the group would have been inside Tibet’s immigration office at the border crossing.
“I feel so sad. We are just thinking about what to do next. We have 12 British citizens supposed to make entry this morning.”
Ram Kumar Adhikari, Alpine Eco Trek manager — LBC, 26 Aug 2026
The Nepal Tourism Board later raised the UK total to 33 British nationals unaccounted for. At least 28 police officials and 15 Rasuwa Customs Office employees are also among the missing, alongside 60 workers connected to the 20-megawatt Langtang Khola Hydropower Project who have been out of contact since Wednesday morning.
The Rescue Operation
The Nepali Army rescued 88 people in the first hours after the flood struck, deploying 12 helicopters including four military aircraft. Thirteen of those rescued were taken to Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital in Kathmandu for treatment. But rescue flights have been repeatedly disrupted by poor weather. Three helicopters carrying relief supplies were forced to turn back.
A major flash flood has struck Nepal’s Rasuwa district. The @NepalRedCross has activated Emergency Response Teams.
— IFRC Asia Pacific (@IFRCAsiaPacific) August 26, 2026
India dispatched 10 tonnes of humanitarian assistance and essential medicines. China’s President Xi Jinping ordered an “all-out” rescue effort on the Tibetan side, where 265 people remain missing in Gyirong county. Nepal’s NDRRMA warned that the risk along the Bhote Koshi and Trishuli rivers persisted, and urged residents to stay away from riverbanks until further notice.
Why This Corridor Keeps Flooding
This is the second catastrophic flood in the Lhende Khola and Bhotekoshi corridor in 14 months. In July 2025, a glacial lake outburst on the Tibetan side killed nine people, destroyed the Friendship Bridge linking Nepal and China, and swept away hundreds of parked trucks and vehicles at the border. That flood was confirmed by satellite imagery to have been caused by the draining of a supraglacial lake. The bridge had not been fully rebuilt when this second, far deadlier flood struck.
Saswata Sanyal, a disaster risk reduction specialist at the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development, told NPR that the Lhende Khola had now flooded twice in 14 months. Climate researchers have warned that the Himalayan region faces accelerating glacial instability.
Nepal’s Department of Hydrology and Meteorology recorded no heavy rainfall in Rasuwa before either flood, meaning both were triggered by events upstream rather than by local monsoon conditions. The lack of a cross-border early warning system for this specific corridor is now a central question.
What This Means if You Are Travelling to Nepal
The FCDO updated its Nepal travel advice on 26 August. The UK Embassy in Kathmandu issued a joint statement with the embassies of Australia, the EU, Finland, France, Norway and Switzerland urging British nationals in affected areas to follow local authority advice. For consular assistance call (+44) (0)207 008 5000 or (+977) (0)14237100.
Anyone with bookings on the Kailash Mansarovar route through Rasuwa should contact their tour operator immediately. The Miteri Bridge border crossing has been destroyed for the second time in 14 months, and road access between Kathmandu and Rasuwa remains severely disrupted.
The Kumamoto earthquake showed how quickly a natural disaster can close a trekking corridor. Anyone considering travel to Nepal during the monsoon season should review the FCDO’s standing advice on Himalayan risks and check the GT Travel Safety Score for Nepal’s current rating.
Search and rescue operations remain ongoing but hampered by weather and destroyed road infrastructure. The death toll is expected to rise as rescue teams reach more remote settlements. Scientists say it could take several days to determine whether a glacial lake outburst contributed to the flood.
For the families of the 403 people still unaccounted for, the wait continues. Communication lines in the affected area remain down, and poor weather has repeatedly grounded the helicopter flights that are the only way in or out of the worst-hit zones. This story will be updated as new information becomes available.
