RESOLVING THE LEDGER
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Rescue teams were searching for hundreds of missing people along the Nepal-China border Thursday after a catastrophic and deadly torrent of floods and mud swept through several communities a day earlier following a glacial collapse. The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority in Nepal said 826 people were missing and the death toll from the country\u0027s flash floods rose to 165 on Thursday. Nepalese authorities ramped up operations in the worst-affected districts of Nuwakot and Rasuwa. Chinese state broadcaster CCTV separately reported that 558 people were missing in Tibet \u2014 260 of them foreigners \u2014 and two villagers were rescued. At least three people were reported killed as of Thursday morning, it said.Hikmat Singh Ayer, CEO and senior director of Nepal\u0027s Tourism Board, told CBS News Wednesday there were at least 33 Americans among the missing foreign nationals.Flash floods decimated villages, slamming into houses, roads, bridges and power plants, CBS News\u0027 \u00a0Arshad Zargar reported.\u00a0Videos broadcast by regional news outlets\u00a0and posted on social media show violent torrents of water surging through valleys and mountain passes, tearing down bridges and dams and sweeping away buildings. \u00a0Drone footage in Nepal on Wednesday showed roads destroyed and buildings buried by thundering water the color of wet cement. The region\u0027s steep valleys are economic lifelines and travel corridors but are precarious when disaster strikes. Images showed what appeared to be the second floors of buildings in Nepal\u0027s hard-hit Nuwakot district slathered in mud after the torrent rushed by. Debris hung from tree branches and wires, vehicles were buried and some stunned survivors were caked in mud. The floods halted travel in some areas. There was little time for anyone to flee. "When I reached Dhunge bazaar, in half an hour, the flood came and damaged all the market. People were preparing to go to office then," resident Shoyam Rajbhandari said. "How many people are missing or dead, we don\u0027t know."Search and rescue efforts intensify \u00a0Since early morning, army and private helicopters have been deployed. The Nepalese army rescued more than 100 people from flood-affected areas through helicopter operations Thursday, army spokesperson Brigadier General Raja Ram Basnet said. At least eight foreign nationals were airlifted to Kathmandu, he said, adding that army teams also evacuated people trapped inside facilities linked to the Trishuli hydropower project.Rescuers found bodies about 62 miles downstream from the disaster zone in Chitwan district. Dozens of injured people have been transported to the country\u0027s capital, Kathmandu, for advanced medical care. In Tibet, a mudslide that struck near the land border crossing of Gyirong Port on Wednesday left mud in the surrounding areas more than five feet deep on average, with some road sections exceeding six feet, Chinese state broadcaster CCTV reported Thursday. Roads leading to the port were all damaged, while communication was cut off, it said. With light rain continuing in the area, secondary collapses or landslides may occur, it added.CCTV said a barrier lake has also been discovered in the direction of the port, posing challenges to the rescue operation. Chinese authorities deployed a large military transport aircraft to send a team to the region, it said. Officials in Nepal had earlier said hundreds of foreigners were reported missing, including Indian nationals on pilgrimage to Mount Kailash in Tibet, a sacred site for Hindus.Secretary of State Marco Rubio expressed U.S. solidarity with the Nepali people, saying in a\u00a0social media post\u00a0that his department "stands ready to support the government of Nepal with needed humanitarian assistance."In a\u00a0social media post, the U.S. Embassy in Nepal expressed its "heartfelt condolences to the families and loved ones of those who lost their lives in the devastating floods." It said the State Department is closely monitoring the situation and sending an adviser to the region to help with response efforts as well as a $500,000 grant to Catholic Relief Services.Buddhist spiritual leader the Dalai Lama said Thursday that he was praying for all those killed in devastating floods in Nepal and Tibet, French news agency AFP reported.\u00a0 "I pray for all those who have lost their lives, and offer my sympathy and heartfelt condolences to the bereaved and to all those affected by this tragedy," he said in a statement.Glacier collapse, not earthquake, seen as catastrophe\u0027s cause \u00a0The U.S. Geological Survey first reported a magnitude 4.4 earthquake early Wednesday, about 41 miles north of Kathmandu, near the border. The USGS later updated its analysis to say the seismic event it measured was a magnitude 5.2 glacial collapse that sent debris flowing downstream with catastrophic impact on communities. It said its determination was based on data from nearby seismic stations, long period seismic waves and satellite imagery, and that no earthquake had occurred. Climate experts at the Kathmandu-based International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development said an avalanche from a glacier likely caused Wednesday\u0027s flash flood. "Hydrological observations indicate the exceptional speed and magnitude of the flood wave," they said in an emailed statement, noting that water levels at one point on the Trishuli river rose by as much as 27 feet over half an hour. The Lhende Khola River, a tributary of the Bhotekoshi, had maximum flooding, they said.Climate change\u0027s threat to region increasing"The Lhende Khola has flooded twice in 14 months, this time triggered by an ice rock avalanche from a glacier on the Nepal side that blocked the river and released a sudden surge downstream," said Saswata Sanyal, a disaster risk reduction specialist at the climate research group. He noted the importance of early warnings in "a warmin...
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