Five people remained out of contact Sunday after a landslide blocked the Budhi Gandaki River in Nepal’s Gorkha district and released a flood of mud and debris that swept away homes, bridges and hydropower construction facilities, the country’s disaster authority said.
The landslide struck between Lokpa and Chumling in Ward 6 of Chumnubri Rural Municipality, according to a press note from the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority. The river became blocked before floodwater carrying mud and debris surged downstream.
The five people — two women and three men — had been staying at a sheep shed in Ujling, Chumchet, in the municipality’s Ward 6. The press note did not report any confirmed deaths.
Four Nepali Army helicopters were deployed for search and rescue. The authority said Army helicopters had rescued 47 people by the time it issued the press note.
In a separate post on X, the Nepali Army said troops deployed by air and land had airlifted six people from Jagat, where landslides posed a threat. A composite quick reaction team based in Kathmandu was also flown to the area. The supplied statements did not specify whether those six were included in the authority’s count of 47.
Bridges and homes swept away
The flood carried off the old suspension bridge linking Nyakchet and Sirdibas in Chumnubri-3. At the same location, one house was swept away and water entered another.
A suspension bridge connecting Machha Khola to Keroja in Dharche Rural Municipality-5 was also lost. Floodwater entered the lower settlement at Machha Khola, putting 20 to 22 houses at risk.
In Salleri, Dharche-3, an under-construction structure belonging to Taims Urja Pvt. Ltd. was washed away along with seven to eight nearby houses. Twelve of the company’s employees were moved to safety.
At Nayapul in Arughat Rural Municipality-1, the flood swept away the Gorkha-side span of a three-span concrete bridge linking Arughat with Dhading. A steel bridge at Soti, connecting wards 2 and 3 of Arughat, was also swept away.
The main camp area of the 341-megawatt Budhi Gandaki hydropower project and some construction equipment were washed away. Two telephone towers and 50 electricity poles were damaged, the authority said.
Rescue and relief
The authority reported that 437 security personnel had been deployed: 127 Nepali Army personnel, including three Special Force units, 133 Nepal Police personnel and 177 members of the Armed Police Force.
Another 50 police personnel were on standby at the Nepal Police Disaster Response and Training Center.
A 25-member team from the Area Police Office in Arughat was sent to warn riverbank residents and move them to safe places.
The authority said it received flood information at 6 a.m. from the Flood Forecasting Division of the Hydrology and Water Resources Research Center. Early-warning text messages were then sent to riverside communities in Gorkha, Dhading and Chitwan.
Text alerts also went to 221 responders across Gorkha, Dhading, Tanahun, Chitwan, Nawalparasi East and Nawalparasi West, as well as central teams, directing them to deploy.
The Monsoon Response Command Post began meeting around 6:30 a.m. under Executive Chief Dharma Raj Uprety to monitor the flood and coordinate the response.
Relief supplies were being transported by road and helicopter. A three-member team equipped with drones and geological expertise was deployed to investigate the cause of the disaster.
Officials from the Department of Roads and the Department of Local Infrastructure Development were sent to assess road access and the feasibility of installing a Bailey bridge. District rapid response teams and hospital emergency medical teams in Gorkha, Lamjung and Tanahun were placed on standby.
The authority urged residents along the Budhi Gandaki to remain in safe places away from riverbanks and vulnerable settlements through Sunday evening. It also asked people to avoid dangerous bridges and roads and follow instructions from local authorities and security personnel.
