Kathmandu: Nearly 2,500 stranded people, including 163 foreigners, were evacuated by rescue teams in Nepal, as search and relief operations continued Saturday following the devastating flash floods that killed over 500.
The flash floods swept through Rasuwa and other parts of central Nepal on Wednesday, causing loss of life and widespread damage to settlements, roads, bridges and hydropower infrastructure, while leaving nearly 2,000 people missing.
More than 11,000 security personnel, including over 5,000 Nepal Army personnel, have been mobilised for search and rescue operations.
According to the Nepal Army’s Public Relations Directorate, 2,465 people have been evacuated so far, including 163 foreigners — 113 Indians, 26 Chinese, 15 South Koreans, four Germans, two each from Italy and the US, and one Omani national.
As many as 191 workers were evacuated from tunnels of various hydropower projects in Trishuli and Rasuwa, it said.
While 2,265 of those evacuated were rescued by helicopters, 200 were evacuated through land routes.
Emergency health centres set up at Dhunche and Trishuli have so far provided medical assistance to 1,706 people evacuated from different flood-hit areas, it said.
Meanwhile, the Mugling-Kathmandu highway, a major road link connecting the capital with other parts of the country through land route, resumed operations Saturday, Nepal Police said in a notice.
It had remained closed since Wednesday due to the risk of flooding and landslides.
Nepal Police said operations resumed on the highway after assessing the situation, and vehicles are gradually allowed to move towards their destination. This has brought relief to passengers who had remained stranded on the highway for several days.
National highways and other major road sections in central Nepal have been obstructed due to flood and landslide risks for the past four days.
Meanwhile, more than Rs 2.295 billion has been collected for the Prime Minister’s Disaster Relief Fund (PMDRF) by Friday night. The fund received Rs 1.91 billion within 36 hours from Wednesday afternoon to Thursday midnight, while assistance worth Rs 385.5 million was donated on Friday alone, according to sources at the Prime Minister’s Office.
The Ministry of Finance said the deposits were made to accounts held at 10 different commercial banks.
After the severe flash floods at the Bhotekoshi River, which flows along the Nepal-China border, the government declared the affected areas disaster zones. Following the decision, various organisations and individuals donated to the fund.
With the latest contributions, the fund’s balance has risen to Rs 4.09 billion from Rs 2.17 billion.
The government has designated the Ministry of Finance as the focal ministry for collecting contributions to the PMDRF and coordinating assistance. Finance Minister Swarnim Wagle has been personally accepting contributions of Rs 10 million or more from institutional donors, according to the minister’s secretariat.
It added that individual donors can provide cash contributions by visiting the ministry in person.
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