DEATH TOLL FROM FLOODS RISES TO 157

KATHMANDU, AUGUST 26 /SRNA/ - The death toll from a devastating flash flood that swept through villages in northern Nepal has risen to 157, according to the latest police figures.

Nepal’s Tourism Board said that more than 484 tourists were missing.

Surveillance camera footage has also been released showing a massive torrent of mud and water crashing into buildings at the border crossing in Gyirong as people flee and try to save their lives.

However, the powerful torrent caught up with them and destroyed everything in its path.

Numerous videos that emerged later show the scale of the massive disaster.

Officials from Nepal’s Department of Hydrology and Meteorology said they had identified in the available footage what appeared to be a large chunk of ice, probably part of a glacier, breaking off from a mountain on the Tibetan side. The icefall swept rocks and other debris along with it.

According to their analysis, friction between the rocks and ice during the fall may have generated a significant amount of water. The remaining material and sediment then formed a temporary dam in the river, blocking the flow of water, and its subsequent breach caused the flooding.

China’s Xinhua news agency reported that at around 10:30 a.m., a landslide on the Nepali side, in the Girong area, resulted in a large number of casualties and missing people at the port of the same name.

The exact cause of the flooding will not be known until clear satellite imagery becomes available.