Flood damage leaves key Nepal districts isolated as road repairs race against Dashain

Continuous rainfall on Sept 24-25 destroyed roads and bridges across central Nepal, isolating districts such as Manang, Mustang, Baglung and Rasuwa from the national road system. In Lamjung, the Dumre-Besisahar-Chame road is open up to Chame, but a concrete bridge over the Marsyangdi river is still underwater, blocking further travel. The Department of Roads is repairing the Myagdi-Mustang corridor, targeting a Monday reopening after reconstructing the Pokharebagar-Gharkhola bridge and clearing landslides.

Work on the Parbat-Baglung link includes diverting the Kaligandaki river and building a retaining wall to replace a washed-away approach road. In Rasuwa, a Bailey bridge will be installed over the Falakhu river within five days, with plans to assess a similar structure over the Bhotekoshi river. The Nepal Army and Armed Police Force are providing support, and officials have pledged that key routes will be operational before the Dashain holidays.