Nepal floods: Death toll rises to 987, nearly 4,000 missing; 590 foreigners among untraced

The death toll from the devastating flash floods in Nepal has risen to 987 while 3,925 people remain missing, including 590 foreigners from 39 countries and 83 security personnel. More than 10,000 people have been rescued so far, PTI reported.

That is the latest update as of Monday (August 31) night.

The government has deployed over 21,000 security personnel as intermittent rain, swollen rivers and damaged roads and bridges continue to hamper search operations.

The floods, triggered by an ice-and-rock

collapse or avalanche near the Nepal-Tibet border on August 26, swept through northern and central Nepal, destroying homes, roads, bridges and hydropower projects.

Rescuers are searching for 639 workers and employees at flood-hit hydropower sites, many of whom are believed to be trapped inside tunnels. A controlled blast was carried out at one site to clear access, with specialised teams from India and China assisting the operations.

India has stepped up its response, with 158 Indian nationals rescued so far, the Ministry of External Affairs said.

A 19-member Indian forensic team is assisting Nepalese authorities with DNA analysis and identification of recovered remains, while an Indian tunnel rescue team is working alongside the Nepal Army at the Chilime and Langtang hydropower sites.

The MEA had earlier said more than 275 Indians and 128 persons of Indian origin remained missing or non-contactable in Nepal. In one local case, three of six workers from Uttar Pradesh's Kushinagar who went missing while working at a hydropower project in Rasuwa have returned, while three remain untraced.

Across the border in Tibet, numbers remain unchanged since Sunday, August 30, when it reported 16 lives lost to the disaster and nearly 550 missing in Tibet.

Nepal has also sought international assistance, including DNA testing kits, freezers, LiDAR equipment, high-capacity drones and specialised tunnel-rescue equipment, as the focus increasingly shifts towards recovering and identifying bodies.