People waiting for news on missing relatives stand outside a military camp, following flash floods on Friday in Trishuli, Nepal.Ezra Acayan/Getty Images
Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand says at least 32 Canadians and permanent residents remain missing after a devastating flood and mudslide tore through the Himalayan border between Nepal and China earlier this week.
Nepalese authorities have confirmed 579 people were killed because of the catastrophe. A total of 1,924 individuals remain missing, of which 517 are foreign nationals, Ms. Anand told reporters on Friday. No Canadians have been identified among those confirmed dead, she said.
A massive glacial collapse triggered the flash flooding early on Wednesday in Nepal’s remote mountainous region that borders Tibet. It caused a torrent of rock, ice, mud and debris to cascade downriver, sweeping through bridges and vehicles and pulverizing many buildings.
Religious pilgrims from Canada at building swept away in Tibet-Nepal border floods
The lake that has formed because of the flood began to overflow on Friday, local authorities warned. Rainfall and water flowing downhill could potentially prompt further landslides and flooding, the authorities stated.
Ms. Anand said five consular officials have arrived in the region to support Canadians.
Rescuers have pulled survivors caked in dark mud and helicopters lifted stranded people to safety after catastrophic floods on the Nepal-China border.
The Associated Press
Speaking alongside the minister, Randeep Sarai, the secretary of state for international development, said Canada is allocating $5-million toward emergency relief and humanitarian assistance in Nepal.
The new funding will be provided through non-governmental organizations, such as the Red Cross, to “deliver life-saving assistance to those who need it most,” Mr. Sarai said.
“We have also offered to deploy relief supplies from emergency stockpiles by the Canadian Red Cross, should they be requested.”
Fears of second catastrophe in Nepal and Tibet as lake formed by flood overflows
Earlier on Friday, the Nepal Tourism Board said 121 foreign nationals were rescued in the affected regions. No Canadians were among those people, it said.
Ms. Anand cautioned that the number of people reported missing and deceased are likely to change because the situation remains volatile.
Prior to the catastrophe, Ms. Anand said at least 866 Canadians were registered in Nepal and more than 10,000 in China by Global Affairs Canada.