Nepal ends landslide search; over 5,000 missing, including five Japanese
Version 2: Additional reports from Tokyo Shimbun, Yomiuri and TBS add a dated Nepal-side death toll and a lower missing count than previously reported, and name Prime Minister Balendra Shah, cited by Yomiuri, as chairing the disaster-response meeting; the number of missing still varies between outlets.
In short
Nepal's government decided on Oct. 5 to call off search and rescue operations for the Aug. 26 landslide on the China-Nepal border, except where searches are still needed or new information emerges, and to shift its focus to recovery and reconstruction. Five Japanese nationals are among the missing. Outlets differ on the scale: Nikkei and Tokyo Shimbun reported more than 6,000 missing, Yomiuri more than 5,200, and Jiji Press and TBS about 5,000 or more, while Nikkei put the death toll at 1,496 across the two countries and Yomiuri reported 1,453 deaths on Nepal's side as of Sept. 26.
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Nepal's government decided on Oct. 5 to call off search and rescue operations for the Aug. 26 landslide on the China-Nepal border and to shift its emphasis to recovery and reconstruction, according to Jiji Press, Yahoo! News Japan, Nikkei, Yomiuri Shimbun and TBS NEWS DIG. Nikkei reported that Prime Minister Shah said in a Facebook post that search and rescue would be suspended, and that the decision was taken at a meeting that day, with searches to be carried out when necessary. Yomiuri, citing the English-language Kathmandu Post, said Shah chaired a government disaster-response meeting that instructed relevant departments to keep up necessary searches while strengthening recovery work. [ 1 , 2 , 4 , 5 , 6 ]
The landslide occurred on Aug. 26, Nikkei and TBS reported. Nikkei said it hit the Gyirong border checkpoint in Shigatse, in China's Tibet Autonomous Region, then travelled nearly 100 kilometres down a river in Nepal; some bodies were found downstream in India, and the riverside was covered in mud and earth. Nepal's government estimated that about 7,500 homes were affected, according to Nikkei. A Tokyo Shimbun photo caption dated Oct. 2 showed people carrying supplies in Nuwakot district in central Nepal. [ 3 , 4 , 6 ]
The outlets differ on the toll. Nikkei reported 1,496 deaths in the two countries and more than 6,000 people missing, including a family of five Japanese from Osaka. Yomiuri put the death toll on Nepal's side at 1,453 as of Sept. 26 and the number missing at more than 5,200, including five Japanese. TBS reported more than 1,400 dead on Nepal's side and more than 5,000 missing, including five Japanese. Jiji Press said 5,000 were missing including five Japanese, and Tokyo Shimbun's headline said 6,000 including Japanese nationals. [ 1 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 ]
Japan dispatched an international emergency relief team to help confirm the identities of victims, Nikkei reported, but the effort was difficult because the remains recovered were badly deteriorated. [ 4 ]
Why it matters
The decision closes the active search phase of a disaster that left more than a thousand dead and thousands unaccounted for, leaving families, including five Japanese nationals' relatives, without confirmation of what happened to them. Nepal's government says it will now concentrate on recovery and reconstruction in a river valley where it estimates about 7,500 homes were affected. Japan's relief team, sent to help identify the dead, did not complete that work because of the condition of the remains, according to Nikkei.
Key facts
- Nepal's government decided on Oct. 5 to halt search and rescue operations for the Aug. 26 landslide, except where searches are still necessary or new information emerges. [ 1 , 2 , 4 , 5 , 6 ]
- The government will shift its emphasis to recovery and reconstruction. [ 4 , 5 , 6 ]
- The landslide occurred on Aug. 26 and struck the Gyirong border checkpoint in Shigatse, in China's Tibet Autonomous Region, before travelling nearly 100 km down a river in Nepal, according to Nikkei. [ 4 ]
- Nikkei reported 1,496 deaths in the two countries; Yomiuri reported 1,453 deaths on Nepal's side as of Sept. 26; TBS reported more than 1,400 deaths on Nepal's side. [ 4 , 5 , 6 ]
- Missing-person figures differ: Jiji Press said 5,000, TBS more than 5,000, Yomiuri more than 5,200, and Tokyo Shimbun and Nikkei more than 6,000. [ 1 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 ]
- Five Japanese nationals are among those missing. [ 1 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 ]
- Nikkei reported that about 7,500 homes were affected, according to Nepal's government. [ 4 ]
- Yomiuri, citing the Kathmandu Post, said Prime Minister Balendra Shah chaired the disaster-response meeting that day. [ 5 ]
Confirmed by several sources
- Nepal's government decided on Oct. 5 to end search and rescue operations for the landslide, except where searches are still needed or new information emerges, and to shift to recovery and reconstruction. [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 ]
- Five Japanese nationals are among those missing. [ 1 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 ]
- The landslide occurred on Aug. 26. [ 4 , 6 ]
Still unclear
- The number of people missing. Jiji Press and TBS reported 5,000 or more, Yomiuri more than 5,200, and Tokyo Shimbun and Nikkei more than 6,000; the documents do not explain the differences or give a single count date.
- The death toll. Nikkei reported 1,496 dead in the two countries, Yomiuri 1,453 on Nepal's side as of Sept. 26 and TBS more than 1,400 on Nepal's side, so the figures cover different areas and dates.
- Whether search operations could resume. Jiji Press and Tokyo Shimbun described the search as called off or suspended, while Nikkei and Yomiuri said searches would continue where necessary or in high-urgency cases; the documents do not say whether the halt is permanent.
- Where within Nepal the landslide struck. Nikkei places it along the river running down from the Gyirong checkpoint, while a Tokyo Shimbun photo caption dated Oct. 2 shows people carrying supplies in Nuwakot district in central Nepal; the documents do not say the landslide hit that district.
What local media are saying
Timeline, local time
- The landslide occurs, striking the Gyirong border checkpoint in Shigatse, Tibet, and travelling nearly 100 km down a river in Nepal. [ 4 , 6 ]
- Nepal's death toll stands at 1,453 as of this date, according to Yomiuri. [ 5 ]
- A Tokyo Shimbun photo dated this day shows people carrying supplies in Nuwakot district in central Nepal. [ 3 ]
- At a meeting, Nepal's government decides to suspend search and rescue except when new information or urgent cases require it; Prime Minister Shah announces the decision, according to Nikkei and Yomiuri. [ 2 , 4 , 5 ]
- Jiji Press reports the search has been called off, with 5,000 missing including five Japanese nationals. [ 1 ]
- Yahoo! News Japan carries the government's decision to end the search. [ 2 ]
- Tokyo Shimbun reports the search has been interrupted, with 6,000 missing including Japanese nationals. [ 3 ]
- Nikkei reports the suspension of search and rescue and puts the number missing at more than 6,000, with 1,496 dead in the two countries. [ 4 ]
- Yomiuri reports the search and rescue operation has ended and puts the missing at more than 5,200, with 1,453 dead on Nepal's side as of Sept. 26. [ 5 ]
- TBS reports the decision to end the search and shift to recovery, with more than 1,400 dead on Nepal's side and more than 5,000 missing. [ 6 ]