Fears are growing for American tourists who travelled to Nepal as part of spiritual pilgrimages after a glacier collapse unleashed catastrophic floods across the Nepal-Tibet border, killing nearly 800 people and leaving thousands unaccounted for.
The US State Department said on Sunday that approximately 85 American citizens remained missing in Nepal and Tibet. Nine Americans had been evacuated, while no deaths of US citizens had been confirmed.
Washington said its embassies in Kathmandu and Beijing were working around the clock with local authorities to establish the whereabouts of those still missing.
The disaster struck on Wednesday, August 26, when a collapse involving rock and ice sent a surge of water, mud and debris through Himalayan valleys. Villages, roads, bridges and border facilities were swept away within minutes.
Many of those caught in the floods had been travelling to Mount Kailash, a sacred site revered by Hindus and Buddhists. Pilgrims commonly begin the journey in Nepal before crossing into Tibet.
Himalayan Glacier, one of the tour operators involved, said 40 members of one pilgrimage group remained unaccounted for, including eight Americans. A separate Tennessee-based organisation, the Isha Foundation, said 77 of its pilgrims were missing, among them 22 Americans.
Rescue teams have been searching devastated settlements and river valleys, but operations have been hampered by destroyed infrastructure, heavy mud and poor weather. Authorities have warned that the full scale of the disaster may not be known for some time.
The US State Department said Washington had also announced more than $3.6 million in humanitarian assistance for the affected region, including emergency food aid for up to 10,000 households.
