Nepal disaster losses exceed $2.5 billion as search for survivors continues

Nepal has estimated that last week’s catastrophic flooding and landslides caused at least 387.5 billion Nepalese rupees ($2.56 billion) in damage to property, homes and infrastructure, as rescue teams continue searching for thousands of people still missing.

Dharma Raj Upreti, head of Nepal’s National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority, said on September 4 that the scale of the destruction would require a major reconstruction effort, Reuters reports.

Officials estimate that about 20,000 homes will need to be rebuilt in the worst-affected areas, with at least 7,500 houses already destroyed, Upreti said.

The government estimates that approximately $52.6 million will be required during the first four months of the recovery effort. The initial funding will support road reconstruction, temporary shelters and the restoration of drinking-water and electricity supplies.

The disaster has also affected hundreds of foreign nationals. Nepalese authorities said on September 3 that 583 foreign nationals were missing, many of them pilgrims and trekkers who were in the affected areas.

Australian disaster-response specialists arrived in Nepal on September 4 to assist with the search for survivors. The Australian government has expressed “serious concerns” about the welfare of its 36 citizens who remain missing.

The disaster began on August 26 when a major avalanche or glacier-related collapse occurred in northern Nepal near the border with China, about 20 kilometres northeast of the Rasuwagadh border crossing. A torrent of rock, ice and debris reportedly travelled more than 70 kilometres down the river valley, destroying settlements and inundating large areas.

The flooding and debris flow also swept through the Trishuli River valley, where hundreds of workers and others were believed to have been inside tunnels associated with hydropower projects.

On September 4, two people were rescued alive from a tunnel connected to a hydropower facility on the Trishuli River, nine days after the disaster. Rescue officials believe at least 900 people may have been trapped in tunnels serving six hydropower projects along the river.

Nepalese authorities have reported at least 1,252 deaths, while more than 4,200 people remain missing and tens of thousands have been displaced. Houses, roads, schools and other infrastructure were swept away in communities near the border with China's Tibet region.

The disaster has also caused significant casualties on the Chinese side of the border. China has reported 21 deaths in Tibet, with another 541 people listed as missing.

By Sabina Mammadli