A flash flood that tore through the Himalayan borderlands between Nepal and Tibet on Wednesday has more than doubled the number of people believed missing to 1,900, according to the latest count from Nepali authorities, with at least several hundred already confirmed dead.
The disaster struck a remote, mountainous region, and rescue efforts have been made far more complicated by fears over a further wave of flooding. A chunk of a glacier broke away and a glacial lake has formed behind the debris, raising the prospect of a much larger cascade in the coming days. In many places the water is still not receding, and teams are working through mud and shattered roads.
Authorities say roughly 900 of the unaccounted for are connected to a hydropower project in the area. United Nations observers in the border villages told the New York Times that flood sirens have sounded, residents have been moved to higher ground, and survivors remain traumatized even as relief workers dig through the wreckage.
The State Department said the United States was deeply worried after learning that as many as 90 Americans near the Nepal-Tibet border are among those believed missing, and it is sending $500,000 in emergency aid to assist both governments with the search.
By MARGARET ZHANG, SAMANTHA BAROQUE and DANIELSON M. REYES of the New York Times