Flash Flood Sweeps Away Homes and Bridges in Central Nepal

Homes, bridges, and part of a hydropower project were swept away by a flash flood along the Budhi Gandaki River in Nepal's central Gorkha district on Sunday, October 11, 2026. The Nepalese army rescued 49 people from affected areas, while five remained missing, according to officials. The cause remains uncertain, with a possible upstream landslide among the explanations under investigation.

The flooding damaged infrastructure and forced families to flee their homes as communities prepared to celebrate Dashain, a major festival in Nepal. Authorities reported that water levels at one monitoring location rose from two meters (6 feet 5 inches) to nearly 8.5 meters (27 feet 9 inches) within a couple of hours.

The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority said the flood swept away about a dozen houses and several suspension bridges. A hydroelectric project also sustained damage, with construction equipment carried away by the rushing water. An earlier report from the BBC described the destruction as including four bridges, nearly two dozen houses, and a camp associated with the hydropower project.

Binod Parajuli, a meteorologist working with the Nepalese government, said the flooding also destroyed equipment needed to monitor river conditions.

"Our hydrological station was swept away and we are not getting any data from that location."

Without the station, officials could no longer obtain measurements from that monitoring point. The loss complicates the assessment of river conditions as authorities respond to the flooding.

The precise trigger for the disaster has not been established. Some accounts suggest a landslide may have temporarily blocked the river or a tributary, allowing water to accumulate before breaking through. Other accounts indicate that residents upstream observed an ice avalanche.

Experts assessed the latest debris flow as smaller and slower-moving than the devastating flash floods that struck Nepal's border communities with Tibet in August. The earlier disaster left more than 1,400 people dead and thousands missing, according to the BBC's October 11 report.

The Budhi Gandaki River flows into the Trishuli River downstream from another tributary associated with the previous disaster, which was caused by a glacier collapse. Nepal continues to face the consequences of that catastrophe, which destroyed homes and critical energy infrastructure.

Save the Children said it was mobilizing an emergency team to respond to the latest flooding. Tara Chettry, the organization's director in Nepal, warned that children and families could again face severe disruption.

"Children's lives have been ripped apart in an instant yet again", said Tara Chettry, Save the Children's director in Nepal.

The organization said the full extent of the damage had not yet been established, including the potential impact on homes, schools, and local communities. Children in Gorkha may also be experiencing renewed distress after the August floods.

"We are yet to see the full scale of the damage, but they may have lost their homes, schools and communities. Many children in Gorkha will still be in shock and distress after the mega floods in August, barely having a chance to get back on their feet."

Authorities had not reported any deaths from Sunday's flooding in the BBC's initial coverage. Five people remained missing as rescue efforts and damage assessments continued.