Nepal urges villagers to evacuate after flood triggered by landslide, 5 missing

An aerial view of the Budhi Gandaki River swollen by flash floods in Gorkha district, Nepal. (EPA Images pic) KATHMANDU: Nepali authorities urged villagers on Sunday to move to safer places after a flood in a river in the central part of the country swept away several houses and infrastructure, but there were no reports of any casualties.

Two women and three men were out of contact, the national disaster authority said. The army said a further 49 people, including a foreigner, had been rescued. They did not give the person's nationality.

A landslide in Chumnubri village in the Gorkha district, about 100km (62 miles) west of Kathmandu, blocked the Budhi Gandaki River, leading to downstream flooding, authorities said.

The Budhi Gandaki is a tributary of the Trishuli River, downstream from another tributary where a glacier collapse caused a catastrophic flood in August that killed 1,457 people, with thousands still missing.

"We have asked villagers living along the riverbanks downstream to evacuate and remain safe," said Dharmendra Kumar Mishra, the Gorkha district's most senior bureaucrat.

The flood swept away about a dozen houses and two suspension bridges and damaged a hydroelectric project camp, carrying some of the construction equipment away, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority said.

The flooded river carrying muddy sludge was rising and had washed away a highway bridge connecting Gorkha with the neighbouring Dhading district, said Dharam Raj Uprety, chief of the Authority.

National disaster authorities alerted people living along the river in the Gorkha, Tanahun, Chitwan, East Nawalparasi and West Nawalparasi districts about the flood.

"Please help ensure that people in at-risk areas are moved to safe locations in time and assist search and rescue operations as needed," the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority said in a social media post.

Officials said army and police rescue personnel had reached the area and were also monitoring the situation from a helicopter.