Families scour Kathmandu hospital boards for missing loved ones after deadly flash floods

A glacial breach on Nepal’s border with Tibet unleashed a torrent of water, mud and debris that devastated valleys, destroying hundreds of roads and bridges and leaving almost 2,500 people missing while 517 bodies have been retrieved. Relatives converge on the gates of Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital in Kathmandu, scanning noticeboards that pair photographs of the deceased with images of those still missing, hoping for identification.

Police and volunteers record inquiries, and many families return repeatedly for updates. More than 400 injured survivors, many buried head-first in mud, have been flown in, forcing emergency physicians led by Ramesh Kumar Maharjan to create decontamination showers and other novel treatments. The disaster’s remote terrain forces rescuers to rely on helicopters, and humanitarian supplies must be trucked partway before being air-lifted, a process described by UN World Food Programme director Riaz Lodhi as “an enormous challenge.” The situation underscores Nepal’s vulnerability to extreme natural events and the strain on its medical and aid infrastructure.