.jpg)
Seven people have lost their life and 554 remain missing after devastating flash floods tore through Gyirong County in Tibet's Autonomous Region near the Nepal border, Tibet's emergency management department confirmed on Saturday.
The floods struck on Wednesday, sweeping through villages and towns in the border zone. Of the 554 still missing, 260 have been identified as foreign nationals, though their specific nationalities have not yet been made public.
Chinese officials confirmed on Friday that more than 1,000 people had been evacuated from Gyirong County, including 555 tourists and 499 local residents. Official media subsequently reported that no tourist remains stranded in the area.
Among those caught up in the disaster were Indian pilgrims undertaking the Kailash Manasarovar Yatra, a pilgrimage that resumed following an improvement in diplomatic ties between India and China. Some of these pilgrims were reportedly at the immigration building on the Tibet-Nepal border when it was severely hit by the floods. The Chinese government is in the process of sharing information about missing and stranded tourists with relevant embassies in Beijing, including the Embassy of India.
A total of 2,141 rescue workers along with 86 specialists from natural resources and other fields have been deployed across the disaster zone. Rescue official Zou Mingqi, speaking to state media, described the scale of destruction: “As far as I can see, it's nothing but debris.”
Specialised teams have stepped up inspections for geological hazards across surrounding slopes, roads and other critical zones. On Thursday, China issued a Level-IV alert warning that a newly formed barrier lake at the confluence of the Chhochen Khola and Purepu Tsangpo rivers carries a high risk of breaching and flooding downstream areas. A five-person monitoring post has been established at the lake to guard against potential secondary disasters.
Over one kilometre of road has been cleared and reopened to traffic as part of ongoing relief efforts. Separately, the flash floods have claimed 626 lives on the Nepalese side of the border.
