In brief
A sudden surge in Nepal’s Budhi Gandaki River has flooded the Gorkha district, destroying homes, bridges and part of a hydroelectric project. The army rescued around 50 people with five others missing, but no deaths have been reported yet. Water levels climbed from 2 metres to nearly 8.5 metres in hours, prompting concern that a landslide or glacial melt may have triggered the deluge. The flood comes amid a high alert following a deadly August catastrophe that claimed over 1,400 lives. Child welfare groups are already mobilizing emergency support as communities struggle to rebuild.
A powerful flood on the Budhi Gandaki River in Nepal’s Gorkha district has devastated homes, bridges, and a hydropower plant, authorities confirm, with no casualties yet but five missing.
The army rescued about 50 people from the riverbank, while the severe rise in water levels—from 2 metres to nearly 8.5 metres—left families scrambling for shelter and essential supplies.
A video shows raging waters washing away a building complex, illustrating the motion of the debris‑filled flood. The incident follows a high alert after catastrophic floods in August that killed more than 1,400 people and left thousands missing.
Experts say the current flood is smaller and slower than last month’s disaster, but the cause is unclear. Some locals suspect a landslide or ice avalanche that blocked the river, while others point to the sudden burst of dammed water.
Save the Children has dispatched an emergency team, warning that children’s lives have been “ripped apart in an instant” and that many will still be dealing with trauma from the August floods.
The Budhi Gandaki is a tributary of the Trishuli River, part of a watershed that suffered a major glacier collapse in 2024, underscoring the region’s vulnerability to climate‑related disasters.
