Catastrophic flash flooding in Nepal Wednesday killed at least 160 people and left hundreds more missing — including over 40 Americans — as harrowing footage shows a massive surge of water descending from the mountains, sending dozens of terrified people running for their lives.

The flooding is believed to have been caused by a wall of mud and rock that collapsed into a river on the Himalayan border between Nepal and China-controlled Tibet.

At least 157 people were killed on the Nepali side, and more than 341 foreign nationals are missing — including 47 Americans, officials said.

Rescuers transport an elderly woman rescued from a Devighat old age home following a flash flood in Trishuli Bazar, Nuwakot district, Nepal, 26 August 2026.

Chinese leader Xi Jinping has urged an “all-out” search effort after state media confirmed three people died in the landslide over the border and 265 were still missing.

There were “significant” casualties in Gyirong at Tibet’s border with Nepal, Chinese state broadcaster CCTV reported.

At least 19 bridges and nearly 25 miles of road were all swept away by the floodwaters, with several villages and hydropower projects also decimated, locals officials said.

Nepal’s foreign minister Shisir Khanal told the country’s parliament Wednesday that initial reports suggested the floods may have been the result of an avalanche triggered by an earthquake.

The United States Geological Survey reported recording a 4.4-magnitude quake around the time the security footage was taken at the border.

A CCTV screengrab shows people running away as a wall of mud and water destroys buildings in a valley at the Nepal-China border in Gyirong, Tibet region, China on August 26, 2026.

However, USGS hours later clarified that the trembling detected was not an earthquake, but caused by the landslide itself, registering as the equivalent of a 5.2-magnitude quake.

The powerful torrent of water and debris swept away homes, roads and businesses in Nepal, while Tibetan officials said they feared “major casualties” in the wake of the calamity, according to reports in local media.

Residents look at houses partially submerged in muddy water after flash floods at Trishuli Bazar in Nepal’s Nuwakot district on August 26, 2026

Flood alerts have been issued in populated areas downstream from the mountains, including the northern Indian states of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar.

At least 62 Nepali citizens were unaccounted for, with at least 28 police officials among the missing, said Nepali police spokesperson Abi Narayan Kafle.

At least 341 foreign nationals were reported missing from the region, including 47 from the US — three were listed as traveling with the Nepali Fishtail Tours and Travel Tourism Agency — 133 from India on a Hindu pilgrimage to Mount Kailash in Tibet, 34 from Australia, 33 from the UK and 24 from Canada, according to Nepal’s tourism board.

The US Embassy said it was “deeply saddened” by the death toll and urged US citizens in the affected regions to avoid low-lying areas, seek higher ground and follow local instructions.

A State Department spokesperson said the federal agency “is aware of Americans impacted by floods in Nepal and is closely tracking the situation.”

However the spokesperson did not offer details about the number of missing US citizens or their conditions.

The State Department “stands ready to support the Government of Nepal with needed humanitarian assistance,” Secretary Marco Rubio wrote on X.

South Korea’s foreign ministry also said at least nine of its citizens were missing — all of them employees of two energy companies building a hydroelectric plant along Nepal’s Trishuli River.

Malaysia’s foreign ministry reported at least 11 missing while out with travel agencies, with Russia’s embassy in Nepal adding that four of its citizens were unaccounted for in the affected area.

In the immediate aftermath of the devastation, countries and aid organizations around the world have sprung into action to offer support.

India is sending 10 metric tons of humanitarian supplies and “essential medicines” to the country, India’s external affairs minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar said on X.

“India is prepared to provide Nepal with all possible types of humanitarian assistance,” Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on social media.

The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies said it would send $1.2 in emergency funding to the Nepal Red Cross.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said Europe is also gearing up to send assistance to the region.

“My thoughts are with all those affected, especially the families who have lost loved ones or are still waiting for news. We also share a thought for the brave first responders,” she wrote on X.

“We stand ready to mobilise further European assistance,” she added, noting that the EU’s satellite service, Copernicus, had been “activated to help map the affected areas in Nepal and support the response on the ground.”

Source: https://nypost.com/2026/08/26/world-news/flood-hits-china-nepal-border-leaving-many-dead-and-missing/