Nepal urged international travellers not to abandon the Himalayas, declaring the country open for tourism as it continues to assess the human and economic toll from catastrophic floods that killed more than a thousand people.
“Our mountain trails, trekking routes are still waiting for you,” Tourism Minister Khadak Raj Paudel said in a video message on Facebook on Sept 1, using the hashtag #NepalCalling.
“Your coming to Nepal this time does not mean only a holiday. It’s a big support to the country fighting this catastrophic tragedy of flash flood,” he continued in the video.
The plea comes as harrowing images of destroyed villages, roads and bridges – and reports of deaths following last week’s floods – threaten to deter tourists even from parts of Nepal largely untouched by the disaster.
One of Asia’s poorest economies, Nepal faces a daunting reconstruction effort as higher fuel costs from the United States/Israel-Iran war, weaker tourism and slowing growth weigh on the economy.
The disaster has compounded the challenges facing the nation’s 36-year-old Prime Minister Balendra Shah, who rose to power this year on a wave of Gen Z disaffection.
The disaster was triggered last week by a glacial collapse that sent ice, mud, rocks and water surging through a valley in Nepal, wiping out entire settlements in its path.
Videos showed people running for their lives as walls of water and debris swallowed buildings, tore down bridges and power lines, and washed away trees, boulders and vehicles.
So far, more than 590 foreigners from 39 countries remain missing, according to figures from Nepal’s foreign ministry.
The total death toll in Nepal has climbed to at least 1,114 as of Wednesday (Sept 2) morning, with rescue operations continuing. Nearly 4,000 people are still unaccounted for.
Specialist teams from Nepal, India, China and South Korea are meanwhile trying to reach workers missing from flood-hit hydropower projects, pushing into tunnels and digging from above in an effort to find alternative access points.
Teams have made it hundreds of metres into some tunnels before encountering passages completely blocked by debris. Nearly 950 workers at hydropower projects remain unaccounted for, according to the Independent Power Producers’ Association of Nepal (IPPAN), although it is unclear how many were underground when the floods struck.
India’s Ministry of External Affairs said its tunnel rescue team overcame several challenges such as restricted access space and marshy tunnel floor to move deeper, and will continue its efforts to try and rescue any individuals that may still be trapped inside.
Nepal’s Home Minister Sudan Gurung said that authorities had “not lost hope” of finding survivors.
The disaster has damaged infrastructure, including at least 12 hydropower projects in Nepal’s Nuwakot and Rasuwa districts, according to IPPAN.
“The scale and extent of the damage caused by this disaster are becoming increasingly clear as access has improved and more details are now available,” Nepal’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a separate statement.
“Given the magnitude of the destruction, Nepal anticipates requiring substantial interna- tional support during the rehabilitation and reconstruction phase.”
“This has been an exceptionally painful and difficult time for Nepal.”
At least 11,993 people have been rescued so far in Nepal, with emergency crews relying on helicopters and other aircraft to reach communities cut off after floods and landslides destroyed roads and bridges.
On Wednesday, India said a fifth aircraft departed for Nepal with an 11-member rescue team, specialised equipment and 5.5 tonnes of essential medicines. – Bloomberg
