At least five people have died after flash floods tore through Nepal's central Gorkha district, following a landslide before dawn on Sunday 11 October that blocked the Budhi Gandaki river. The slide near Chumchure in the Chumanubri area created a natural dam, and when it breached, a huge volume of water surged downstream through the Manaslu and Tsum Valley areas, according to The Guardian.
The damage was concentrated in the Chumanubri rural municipality, about 100 km west of Kathmandu, where two villages were reportedly destroyed. River levels rose from about 2 metres to nearly 8.5 metres within hours, according to the national disaster risk reduction and management authority (NDRRMA), leaving homes, roads and bridges washed away.
The toll took days to become clear. Early Reuters reporting on 11 October said there had been no casualties, with five people, two women and three men, out of contact, but the casualty figures evolved as the week went on and rescue teams reached the worst-hit areas.
How the disaster unfolded
The landslide struck in the early hours of Sunday morning near Chumchure village, sealing off the Budhi Gandaki. Behind the natural dam, water gathered for a time before the barrier gave way and the stored volume broke through in a single surge.
The flood tore down the river corridor as a viscous mud flow, a technical assessment found, carrying soil, sand and rock that inflicted extensive damage on bridges, roads and buildings along the banks. The findings remain preliminary. For riverside communities in one of Nepal's most remote and mountainous regions, the water arrived with devastating force.
The scale of destruction
Early counts put the damage at 45 homes completely destroyed and 27 partly damaged, or 72 households affected in total according to INF UK, although one summary put the number of homes damaged at 204. Two road bridges and two suspension bridges were swept away, the highway bridge connecting Gorkha and Dhading was washed out, and part of a hydropower project was damaged.
The impact on farming households was severe: more than 1,200 farm animals and poultry were reported lost, a blow to communities where livestock is both livelihood and savings.
A major rescue operation
Almost 100 people were rescued in the initial response, and the operation scaled up rapidly. By Thursday 15 October, authorities had evacuated 1,044 people by helicopter, including 70 foreign nationals. More than 100 foreign trekkers had initially been stranded in the Manaslu and Tsum Valley regions, which are popular trekking areas.
Gorkha district's most senior bureaucrat, Dharmendra Kumar Mishra, urged riverside villagers downstream to evacuate, saying via Reuters: "We have asked villagers living along the river banks downstream to evacuate and remain safe." The NDRRMA issued alerts for Gorkha, Tanahun, Chitwan and East and West Nawalparasi districts, and appealed on social media: "Please help ensure that people in at-risk areas are moved to safe locations in time and assist search and rescue operations as needed."
Questions over the early warning
How much warning communities had is now disputed. Residents reported flooding before 5 AM on 11 October and say warnings were sent out by phone at 4:45 AM and on social media from 4:59 AM. The NDRRMA's initial report, however, recorded the major landslide at 5:30 AM and water flowing through the blockage at 6:15 AM.
The discrepancy raises questions about when the obstruction was first detected, how information moved between communities and authorities, and how the event was documented. As search-and-rescue operations continue, investigators are expected to scrutinise the timeline closely.
Nepal's second disaster in two months
The floods have struck a country still reeling. Only about two months earlier, catastrophic flooding in late August along the Bhotekoshi river near the Tibet border affected about 84,000 people and killed more than 1,400, with around 6,000 still missing.
Gorkha district lies to the west of the August-hit area, so these are different communities facing a fresh emergency. Relief agency INF Nepal says it is responding to the new disaster while still supporting families recovering from the August floods, with more than 4,500 people reached in Rasuwa and Nuwakot. The Budhi Gandaki is a tributary of the Trishuli, downstream from another tributary where an August glacier collapse caused the earlier catastrophe.
Meanwhile in Portugal: unseasonal heat
The same week brought strikingly summer-like weather to southern Europe. On 15 October, 35.7°C was recorded at Alcochete in Portugal, with temperatures over 30°C also reported in France. Earlier in the season, 36°C in Lisbon surprised tourists, and Portugal's weather service issued heat warnings and wildfire-risk alerts.
The pairing of flash floods in the Himalayas with mid-October heat in Iberia in a single week's reporting underlines how extreme weather, hot and wet alike, is arriving out of season.
FAQs
What caused the flash floods in central Nepal?
A landslide before dawn on 11 October blocked the Budhi Gandaki river near Chumchure in the Chumanubri area, creating a natural dam. When that dam breached, a huge volume of water surged downstream through the Manaslu and Tsum Valley areas. A technical assessment found the flow was a viscous mud flow carrying soil, sand and rock, which caused extensive damage to structures along the river corridor, though the findings are still preliminary.
How many people have been affected?
The Guardian reports at least five people have died, a figure that evolved during the week after early Reuters reporting on 11 October said there were no casualties with five people out of contact. Almost 100 people were rescued in the initial response, and by 15 October authorities had evacuated 1,044 people by helicopter, including 70 foreign nationals. Some 72 households were affected, with 45 homes completely destroyed, and more than 1,200 farm animals and poultry were lost.
Was there an early warning?
The timeline is disputed. Residents reported flooding before 5 AM on 11 October and say warnings went out by phone at 4:45 AM and on social media from 4:59 AM, while the national disaster risk reduction and management authority's initial report recorded the major landslide at 5:30 AM and water flowing through the blockage at 6:15 AM. The gap raises questions about how the obstruction was detected and how information moved between communities and authorities.
Why is Nepal so vulnerable to this kind of disaster?
Himalayan rivers are prone to being blocked by landslides and glacial debris, and the resulting natural dams can unleash devastating surges when they breach, a known hazard pattern. This is Nepal's second major flooding disaster in about two months: late-August floods along the Bhotekoshi river near the Tibet border affected about 84,000 people and killed more than 1,400, with around 6,000 still missing. Relief agency INF Nepal says it is responding to the new emergency while still supporting families recovering from the August floods.
What is happening with the heat in Portugal?
The same period brought strikingly unseasonal heat to southern Europe. On 15 October, 35.7°C was recorded at Alcochete in Portugal, with temperatures over 30°C also reported in France. Earlier in the season, 36°C in Lisbon surprised tourists, and Portugal's weather service issued heat warnings and wildfire-risk alerts, a reminder that the two extremes were arriving in the same week.
🤖 This article was rewritten by Feed and Figures' editorial AI from a report originally published by The Guardian. Facts and quotes are preserved from the original; the rewrite focuses on clarity and structure. For the unedited original, see the source link below.
