Nepal flood death toll rises to 939 as rescue efforts enter sixth day

The death toll from devastating floods in Nepal and neighboring Tibet rose to at least 939 on Monday, while Nepal's disaster authority revised the number of missing people to 3,925 as rescue teams continued searching for survivors for a sixth day.

What is the latest death toll in the Nepal floods?

The latest toll includes unidentified victims whose remains were buried in mass graves after DNA samples were collected, since mortuaries could not accommodate the number of dead. Authorities are struggling to cope with the scale of the disaster as rescue teams continue searching flood-hit areas for survivors and remains.

What caused the Nepal floods?

The floods, triggered by a glacial collapse near Nepal's border with China, sent a huge wave of freezing water, rocks and debris through villages and towns on Wednesday. At least 17 bodies were also recovered from rivers downstream in India. Nepali Prime Minister Balendra Shah described the disaster on Sunday as "unimaginable and heartbreaking," as emergency teams faced difficult terrain, washed-out roads and extensive destruction.

Are hydropower workers still trapped in Nepal?

Rescuers are racing to reach about 100 hydropower workers believed to be trapped in several tunnels, using digging, drilling and blasting equipment to clear tonnes of mud and debris.

Three bodies have so far been recovered from two tunnels, while access routes remain blocked. An Indian army officer involved in a specialized tunnel rescue team told AFP that rescuers were working through "sludge" but remained hopeful of finding survivors.

There have also been rare signs of hope. A six-year-old girl pulled from the mud on Friday was reunited with her parents after police found her crying for her mother. "Her body was trapped in mud, but her head was outside," Nepali Armed Police spokesman Netra Bahadur Karki told AFP. "She is out of danger and recovering at a hospital and has reunited with her family."

Is climate change linked to Nepal's floods?

The US Geological Survey said the disaster was triggered by a glacial collapse, although the precise cause remained unclear. The disaster has renewed concerns over the vulnerability of the Himalayas to a warming climate, with scientists saying glaciers across the range are melting faster as global temperatures rise. Nepali Foreign Minister Shisir Khanal said the country was among those bearing the consequences of a changing climate: "The people of Nepal are one of the major victims of the changing climate and its impact."

What is the humanitarian situation in Nepal?

The humanitarian needs are vast, with entire communities swept away and thousands of people left homeless or sheltering in temporary facilities. "This is an unfolding disaster," UN children's fund official Abiodun Banire told AFP, describing the needs of tens of thousands of affected people as enormous. Floodwaters have also washed away roads, destroyed power plants and damaged dozens of bridges, severely complicating relief efforts. "There are too many challenges," said E. Hawadi, a police officer coordinating rescue operations in the badly affected Nuwakot district. "There are no roads, they have all been washed away, and many areas are just not accessible," he told AFP on Monday.

How is Nepal handling the recovered bodies?

With mortuaries struggling to accommodate the number of victims, Nepal has begun burying some recovered bodies after collecting DNA samples to allow families to identify and reclaim them later. Kathmandu has appealed for international assistance, saying it needs more than 1,000 freezer units to preserve the remains. Families searching for missing relatives have been viewing images of recovered bodies at community centers in an effort to identify loved ones. Shobha Adhikary, in the southern city of Bharatpur, told a local coordinator that she believed one of the images showed her childhood best friend: "It looks like him, for sure," she said, holding a photograph of a smiling middle-aged man.

Nepal's missing list includes 592 foreigners, among them trekkers visiting the country's mountains and Hindu pilgrims travelling towards Tibet's sacred Mount Kailash.

How has the flood disaster affected Tibet?

Information from Tibet has been more limited, as the region is largely inaccessible to foreign journalists and Chinese authorities remain the main source of information. China said more than 2,000 personnel were involved in rescue operations but faced difficult conditions as they worked towards the disaster's epicenter. Chinese authorities have reported 16 deaths and 546 people missing in Tibet.

Tibetan advocacy groups in exile have challenged Beijing's account and called for greater transparency. Tencho Gyatso, president of the International Campaign for Tibet, urged China to release "complete and verifiable information about the damage and casualties." China's foreign ministry rejected suggestions that authorities were underreporting casualties, saying on Monday that the release of information had been "open, transparent and timely."

Nepal's disaster agency said the number of missing people on its side of the border stood at 3,925 after an earlier figure was revised, while 939 bodies had been recovered.

The disaster comes as Nepal's economy faces existing pressures, with foreign governments pledging millions of dollars in humanitarian assistance. The government has warned that rebuilding damaged infrastructure and communities could cost "billions of dollars."