270 dead in Nepal flash flood ; 288 Indians among hundreds missing

The death toll in the massive flash floods in Nepal on Thursday rose to 270, as authorities in Nepal race against time to find thousands of missing people, including 288 Indian tourists, in one of the country’s worst disasters in recent years.

The flash floods on Wednesday wreaked havoc across three districts in Nepal.

Nepal Police on Thursday said that the death toll rose to 270 in the flash floods on the Bhotekoshi River after 93 more bodies were recovered.

The bodies recovered so far include 108 in Chitwan, 62 in Nawalparasi East, 27 in Dhading, 20 in Gorkha, 17 in Rasuwa, 15 in Nawalparasi West, 12 in Nuwakot, and nine in Tanahun, according to Nepal Police spokesperson Abi Narayan Kafle.

Kafle further said that, over 800 stranded people, including those injured, have been rescued from the affected areas.

The flash floods were caused after an avalanche blocked the flow of the Lhende tributary of the Bhotekoshi and first hit Timure, near Nepal’s border with China at Rasuwagadhi.

Nepal's Foreign Minister Shisir Khanal on Thursday said nearly 300 Indian tourists are among thousands who are reportedly missing in the flash floods.

Khanal also confirmed that more than 160 people have died and thousands remain untraced after the tragedy in the Rasuwa region.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of External Affairs in New Delhi said that 288 Indians are missing in Nepal floods.