Nepal Government on Wednesday declared dead the 123 people missing in the country’s worst landslide in over a decade, taking the death toll from the disaster to 156, as the search for the bodies buried under the debris was called off.
The landslide, triggered by heavy rains, hit Sindhupalchowk district on Saturday after the Sunkoshi river, which flows across the border into Bihar as the Kosi river, was blocked creating an artificial lake near Nepal-Tibet border. Chief District Officer Gopal Parajuli confirmed that all 123 missing in the landslide were dead on the basis of data submitted by local people. “The missing persons were declared dead after the nature of the site showed no possibilities of finding the bodies,” said Parajul.