Nepal Floods Leave 1,453 Dead and 5,285 Unaccounted For a Month Later

Nepal’s disaster authority reported 1,453 deaths and 5,285 people still unaccounted for one month after flash floods struck central and northern parts of the country. It also said 13,795 people had been rescued. The figures, reported on September 26, reflect the latest available official tally; searches and identification work remain incomplete. The floods began on August 26 near the Nepal-Tibet border and swept through communities along the Bhotekoshi River, damaging homes, roads, bridges and hydropower infrastructure. The disaster authority said 1,451 bodies had been recovered, while two people died during treatment. More than 5,000 people remain unaccounted for, but their eventual status has not been established. Identifying recovered remains has proved difficult, according to authorities, because many were damaged or fragmented. Nepal Police said it had collected DNA samples from 1,329 recovered remains and 2,060 relatives of missing people. The disaster authority said 112 recovered bodies had been identified and handed over to families. Authorities are preserving samples for comparison, with matches potentially allowing further identifications.