A major river in Nepal has flooded, sweeping away houses, bridges and damaging a part of a hydropower station, authorities confirmed.
Around fifty people were rescued from the riverbank in the central Gorkha district, while five remain missing. No casualties were reported yet, but the situation remains urgent as families are displaced.
Video footage shows the raging waters engulfing an entire building complex, illustrating the force of the surge. Within a few hours the water level rose from two metres to almost 8.5 metres.
Experts say the debris flow is less violent than August’s catastrophic flash floods, yet its impact on infrastructure is severe. A landslide or glacier melt upstream may have blocked the river, creating a temporary dam that burst under pressure.
The flood destroyed about a dozen houses, several suspension bridges and damaged a hydropower project, taking construction equipment with it. The Budhi Gandaki is a tributary of the Trishuli river, which had already suffered a glacier‑related disaster in August.
Save the Children has dispatched an emergency team, noting that children in Gorkha are still in shock after last year's floods. “Their lives have been ripped apart in an instant,” said the charity’s director Tara Chettry.
Emergency relief efforts continue as Nepal remains on high alert, seeking to provide shelter, supplies and long‑term recovery support for affected communities.
