A preliminary list published by authorities in Nepal includes 63 Americans among those still out of contact after devastating flooding that has killed at least 475 people in the Rasuwa district, according to Nepal Police. Search and rescue operations are continuing, while officials work to clear roads and other infrastructure damaged by the disaster. The flash floods began on Wednesday after an avalanche of ice and rock from a glacier on the Nepalese side of the border blocked the Lhende Khola River, unleashing a sudden surge downstream, officials and climate experts said.
Nepal Police said that as of 9 a.m. local time on Friday, 475 people had died in flooding that struck the Rasuwa district on Wednesday. Authorities said rescue and search operations were continuing, alongside efforts to remove roadblocks and restore access to affected areas. Officials have also published a preliminary list of more than 500 foreign nationals who remain out of contact following the disaster, including 63 U.S. citizens still unaccounted for.
The latest list includes 65 U.S. citizens listed as out of contact, though two have since been announced as rescued by the Nepal Tourism Department. The document describes those named as "out of contact." Authorities have not said whether those listed are confirmed missing, injured, stranded or otherwise unable to communicate because of the disaster. President Donald Trump said the United States had offered Nepal "any help that they need" following the disaster, and that American officials were working to assist U.S. citizens affected by the flooding.
Speaking at the White House on Thursday, Trump described the flooding as "terrible" and said Washington had contacted Nepal's leadership to offer support. "We're sending aid," Trump said. "We let them know anything they want, we'll have." The State Department said it had deployed a disaster response adviser to the region and was providing $500,000 in humanitarian assistance to support emergency shelter, relief supplies and water and sanitation services in affected communities.
The department has also said it is working with Nepalese authorities to locate and assist U.S. citizens in the flood-hit areas. Contact Newsweek editors on this story: Rebecca Flood and Shakeema Edwards.
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