Flash floods on the Nepal–Tibet border have destroyed villages, killing more than 175 people and leaving about 800 missing. Survivors described watching relatives, homes, farmland and livestock being swept away, while rescue teams searched through deep mud and debris and authorities rushed emergency aid to isolated communities.

The floods struck on Wednesday with such force that seismologists initially mistook them for an earthquake. At Kathmandu’s TU Teaching Hospital, families waited for news of missing relatives, while some survivors were flown in by helicopter; those displaced urgently need rescue, food, temporary shelter and medical care.