More than 100 foreign trekkers have been stranded in Nepal’s mountainous Gorkha district after flash floods swept away bridges and damaged trekking routes over the weekend.
Five villagers, including two women, remain missing after a landslide between Lokpa and Chumling blocked the Budhi Gandaki River, triggering floods downstream, local news outlet Online Khabar reported on Monday, citing local authorities.
Nepal’s National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority said four army helicopters were conducting rescue operations, with at least 47 people evacuated so far. A total of 437 security personnel had been mobilised.
The floods destroyed several bridges and damaged houses, two telephone towers and 50 electricity poles, the authority said.
No electricity
Md Shahadat Hossain, a Bangladeshi trekker stranded in Jagat village, said that nine Bangladeshis were awaiting possible helicopter evacuation.
“We have been stranded in Jagat since yesterday. A flash flood came down from above the village and flowed through its lower part,” he said.
He said more than 200 trekkers, including Nepalis, were sheltering safely in the village, but supplies were dwindling.
“We are safe, but there has been no electricity since yesterday, communication with the outside world has been disrupted, and food supplies are gradually running short,” he added.
The Manaslu Circuit, near Nepal’s border with China, is a popular Himalayan trekking route, with October among its busiest months.
