Nepal floods live: 100s of tourists including Brits missing as Bhotekoshi River swells

Nepal floods live: 100s of tourists including Brits missing as Bhotekoshi River swells As many as 384 tourists, including 291 from countries including India, the United States, the United Kingdom, have been reported missing in Nepal after flooding As many as 384 tourists, including 12 Brits, are thought to be missing after sudden flooding in Nepal today. An avalanche of ice and rock triggered massive flash floods which killed at least eight people and caused massive damage to villages and infrastructure along the Bhotekoshi River, which has now swelled. Officials said 384 tourists, including from countries including India, the United States, the United Kingdom and Malaysia, were missing following the floods. Officials have issued warnings to residents living across several districts of Nepal, telling them to stay away from the banks of Bhotekoshi, Trishuli and Narayani rivers. Several villages as well as roads and hydropower projects have been obliterated in the floods, authorities said. Key Events The Bhotekoshi River flooded around 9 a.m. Wednesday, destroying several villages as well as roads and hydropower projects, officials said. They issued warnings to residents of several of Nepal's districts and asked them to stay away from the banks of Bhotekoshi, Trishuli and Narayani rivers. "We have asked both India and China to help us with the rescue efforts," said Sasmit Pokharel, a spokesperson for the Nepali government. Images taken from the affected areas show torrents of water rushing down mountain valleys, destroying nearby villages. Scenes of the aftermath show destroyed buildings. Climate experts at the Kathmandu-based International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development say an avalanche from a glacier likely caused Wednesday's flash flood. The Lhende Khola River, a tributary of the Bhotekoshi River, witnessed maximum flooding Wednesday, they said. "The Lhende Khola has flooded twice in fourteen months, this time triggered by an ice rock avalanche from a glacier on the Nepal side that blocked the river and released a sudden surge downstream," said Saswata Sanyal, a disaster risk reduction specialist at the climate research group. "In a warming Himalaya, early warning is the first line of adaptation," he added.