As of the morning of 30 August, the search continues for 56 Ukrainians who went missing during flooding in Nepal and Tibet.
“The number of Ukrainians we have been unable to contact remains unchanged: 56 people. Search-and-rescue operations are being carried out daily,” Ukraine’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.
Specialist units from the Chinese rescue team and the Sichuan Fire and Rescue Corps are continuing an uninterrupted search directly among the ruins of the Gyirong border post. It has been confirmed that washed-away vehicles are in the riverbed and near the road, and rescuers are entering the central zone by land, by water and using heavy drones.
Staff at Ukraine’s embassy in India, via Nepal’s competent authorities, have worked out a mechanism for obtaining the geolocation of devices carried by the missing Ukrainians, so that this information can be used in the search going forward.
The situation remains difficult due to the scale of the destruction and the risk of further landslides. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Consular Service Department and Ukraine’s embassies in India and China continue to monitor the situation and are keeping the case of the missing Ukrainians under special control.
- The death toll in Nepal and Tibet from last week’s catastrophic floods rose on Sunday to 750, with a further 3,044 people reported missing.
- Early in the morning on 26 August, flooding began in Rasuwa, north of Nepal’s capital Kathmandu. It is believed to have been caused by snowmelt on the Bhote Koshi river.