Chinese state broadcaster CCTV said 558 people were missing in Tibet's Gyirong County, including 260 foreign nationals. Some may also be included in Nepal's figures, making the overall number of missing people uncertain.

Verified videos showed a torrent of water, mud and debris sweeping people away at the Gyirong border crossing. Further downstream in Nepal, floodwaters destroyed homes, roads, bridges and energy infrastructure.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YM7qzv5oIMQ

Aid Arrives by Air

In the hardest-hit areas, helicopters are dropping tents, food and other emergency supplies provided by neighboring India.

Early reports from Nepali officials suggested that an earthquake might have caused the lower part of the glacier to give way. The US Geological Survey (USGS), however, said the seismic signal initially reported as a magnitude 4.4 earthquake had in fact been generated by the collapse of glacial rock and ice, followed by a massive debris flow.

A preliminary analysis of Planet Labs satellite imagery showed that an avalanche of ice and rock unleashed a flood carrying debris along the Lhende River, about 20 km northeast of the Nepal-China border crossing at Rasuwagadhi, according to Nepali disaster management officials.

Many of the victims and missing tourists were traveling to Mount Kailash and Lake Manasarovar in Tibet, sacred sites revered by Hindus, Buddhists and followers of other religions.

The US State Department said it was sending a disaster response adviser and providing $500,000 in assistance. UN teams and partners were also sending supplies and personnel to affected communities.

Villages Swept Away

Footage from the affected areas captured houses buried in layers of mud, wrecked vehicles and helicopters transporting survivors. Television images also showed cars floating in the water and a metal bridge being swept away, while witnesses said floodwaters had engulfed entire villages.

People searching for information about missing relatives gathered outside a Nepali army training center being used as a base for helicopter rescue operations.

Damage to hydropower plants cut electricity in some areas, leaving police officers to record the names of the missing by the light of their cell phones.

In Tibet, the disaster severed roads, communications and power supplies around Gyirong. Rescuers were unable to establish contact with the border crossing, while a drone survey found that every road leading to it had been destroyed.

(Reuters, est)