Nepal flash floods toll crosses 700 as families return to ruins

Flash floods in Nepal's Bhotekoshi and Trishuli river system have devastated towns and villages. With over 700 dead and thousands missing, survivors now face a long recovery.Flash floods that tore through the Bhotekoshi and Trishuli river system in northern and central Nepal on August 26 have left widespread destruction, with the death toll crossing 700 on Sunday and around 2,500 people still missing. Across the affected areas, survivors have returned to damaged homes, families are searching for missing relatives, and rescue teams are trying to reach those stranded.In Galchhi and other badly hit places, people are sifting through mud, sand and debris to recover whatever they can. At relief camps, displaced families are depending on food and shelter, while at a teaching hospital in Kathmandu, relatives have gathered near the morgue in the hope of identifying loved ones still untraced.Among those trying to rebuild their lives are class 11 student Nayan Tiwari and his cousin Nivi Tiwari, who returned to their flood-hit home in Galchhi. Nayan told PTI Videos he was in Kathmandu when the flood struck and, after learning about the situation, immediately told his family in Galchhi to leave the house and move to a safer location at a higher elevation. Soon after they left, the water flow intensified and swept away everything in its path.For the Tiwari family, the house holds nearly a decade of memories. It was badly damaged, with sand filling the basement and mud and debris entering the first floor, including the kitchen and bedrooms. "Everything was here before, but now there is nothing left. Everything has been destroyed. It feels really bad. But we will rebuild it. We will work hard and make the house like it was before," Nayan said. He said more than 15 houses around their home were completely washed away in the powerful current. Nivi said she had also been in Kathmandu when she first learned about the floods and felt devastated on seeing the house after returning. "I had never seen such a devastating flood before. When I came back and saw my house, I felt completely helpless," she said. Even so, she and her family have started cleaning the house and removing debris. "We are working hard with our family to make this house like it was before. We will repair it soon because our childhood was spent here. We learned to walk and read in this house. Now it has been badly damaged, but we will rebuild it," she said. The family is now relying on relief materials for some of its immediate food and other basic needs.The destruction was also visible in Trishuli in Nuwakot district, where people searched through wreckage for belongings and relatives, moving through thick layers of mud left behind by the floodwaters. At Devighat, displaced families gathered at an emergency relief camp for food, shelter and other assistance. A catering worker at the camp said meals had begun being prepared for survivors and would continue for as long as needed. "We will not say that the food supply has ended. Whoever comes here will be provided free meals," the worker told PTI Videos. At a teaching hospital in Kathmandu, relatives waited near the morgue as posters and photographs of flood victims were put up, hoping to identify loved ones who remain missing. The search has spread across districts because bodies swept away by the floodwaters have been recovered far downstream. Among the missing are eight people from Bihar's Samastipur district who were working at a tyre and hardware shop in the Battar area of Nuwakot district. According to Sandesh Poddar, his eight associates have been missing since the floods and their mobile phones are unreachable. His friend Ajay said the road from Galchhi towards Rasuwa has been blocked, making it difficult for them to travel further and search for the missing men.Some survivors recalled narrowly escaping the surging waters. Renjitha Vinay Kumar, who returned to Kerala's Nedumbassery airport on Sunday, said she saw huge trees being swept away. "It's a blessing that we escaped and survived," she told PTI Videos. Another pilgrim, Vineeth Kumar, said, "About 500-600 metres away, we saw water gushing out like a tsunami." The disaster struck after an ice-rock avalanche following a glacial collapse near the Nepal-Tibet border sent a torrent of water, mud and debris downstream, and for families across the affected areas, the work of rebuilding has only just begun.With PTI Inputs- EndsPublished By: India Today Web Desk Published On: Aug 30, 2026 16:26 IST