None of the 33 British citizens reported missing in Nepal after devastating flash floods have been rescued, authorities said on Sunday.
More than 700 people have died with more than 3,000 reported missing after disaster struck following the collapse of a glacier on Wednesday.
Hundreds of those unaccounted for are foreign nationals including 33 previously reported missing by authorities on the Nepal side of the border. Chinese authorities have also reported 15 Britons missing in Tibet, although its unclear if they are included in Nepal’s figures.
In an update on Sunday night, Nepal’s tourism board said at least 289 people had been rescued so far, but the breakdown of nationalities showed no British people listed among them.
open image in gallery“Search, rescue, evacuation and assistance operations are continuing for those who remain stranded, injured or otherwise affected” the Nepal Tourism Board said.
Among the rescued nationalities are 180 Indian citizens, 89 Chinese, and several individuals from Europe including one person from Bulgaria and Portugal and two Americans.
Pramod Poudel, 34, a food truck owner from East Sussex, told The Sun that his wife, mother, brother and uncle remain missing. He flew out to Nepal to help find them on Friday.
“When I last spoke to her, she said to me, ‘How are you? I love you so much’,” he said.
open image in gallery“I have not had contact with her since then. It’s devastating — I don’t even know how to explain how I’m feeling right now. I’m so worried about her, and all my family. I work so hard for them and they are my whole world. I’m very hopeful of finding them but I’m also praying to God.”
Beijing said missing foreign nationals represented 23 nationalities, while Nepal previously listed people from 33 countries among more than 500 foreign nationals unaccounted for.
Heat and humidity mean that many of the recovered bodies have decomposed beyond recognition.
“Many have no visible faces,” police officer Anil Thapa told Reuters. “In some cases, only hands or legs remain; in others, only parts of the body are available.”
At least 96 unidentified bodies were buried on Saturday with plans to bury over 100 more on Sunday, authorities said. DNA samples were collected in the hope that relatives would be able to identify their loved ones at a later date.
open image in galleryAround 350 people are also reported to be trapped inside a tunnel in a hydropower project as operations to reach them continued on Sunday. ,
Around 10,000 Nepali troops have been deployed to assist with the disaster alongside specialist teams from China and India. The Red Cross estimates that more than 90,000 people have been impacted across the region.
Nepalese officials said bridges have been destroyed and nearly 25 miles of roads have been damaged, which has complicated search efforts.
On Saturday, a rapid deployment team from the UK arrived in Nepal to provide support for Britons and their families.