Nepal Flood Sweeps Away Houses in Gorkha, Riverside Residents Told to Evacuate

Several houses were swept away in Nepal’s Gorkha district early on Sunday after the Budhi Gandaki River surged, carrying mud and sludge through riverside settlements and forcing residents to leave their homes.

Authorities issued flood alerts and evacuation instructions, urging people along the river to move to higher ground. No casualties had been reported at the time of the initial assessment.

Gorkha Chief District Officer Dharmendra Kumar Mishra said preliminary information indicated that five to seven houses at Jagat had been washed away, with additional damage reported downstream.

“The report is that five to seven houses in the riverbed at Jagat have been swept away. A few other houses have also reportedly been swept away downstream. We are working on getting updates from the ground,” Mishra told ANI.

SUDDEN SURGE AROUND 4 AM

Local officials said the river began rising sharply around 4 am, accompanied by a loud roar. The Ugylung and Syar streams also swelled.

The cause remains unconfirmed. Mishra said preliminary reports pointed to a landslide above Siuribas in Chumnubri Rural Municipality.

Narayan Sapkota, the municipality’s chief administrative officer, said officials suspected that a landslide might have blocked the river near Chekampar, creating a temporary dam that subsequently breached.

“We suspect a possible blockage of the river’s flow in Chekampar and that the dam formed after the landslide in the river might have been breached,” he told ANI.

WARNINGS EXTEND TO TRISHULI DOBHAN

A flood alert issued at 6.40 am warned people to stay away from the Budhi Gandaki River as far downstream as Trishuli Dobhan and remain on higher ground until the flood passed.

Residents of riverside settlements, including Chumling and Lokpa, left their homes as the water rose.

The Area Police Office in Arughat issued a safety advisory, while authorities used loudspeakers to warn communities along the river and direct residents towards safer locations. Officials were continuing to collect ground reports to establish the extent of the damage.

With inputs from ANI.