Nepal on high alert for fresh flooding after river levels rise as death toll passes 900

Updated on: August 31, 2026 / 1:05 AM EDT / CBS/AP

Residents in flood-affected districts in Nepal were warned to remain on high alert for possible fresh flooding as rescuers scrambled to clear a major highway connecting Kathmandu to one of the areas worst hit by Wednesday's catastrophic floods.

Nepal's disaster agency said Monday the death toll had climbed to 903 with 4,247 missing, while Chinese authorities reported 16 deaths and 546 missing on the Chinese side of the border.

The latest flood warning notices were sent to people's phones early Sunday after water levels rose in the Bhotekoshi River. Chinese authorities informed their Nepalese counterparts of increased water flow upstream, according to Dharam Raj Uprety, chief executive of Nepal's National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority.

Residents of the flood-hit villages said they were struggling to make sense of near-constant alarms they've received since the initial floods.

"Sometimes they say a flood is coming, then we have to run again to higher ground, even at night. There is also rain," said Govind Shreshta, a resident. "It's really difficult for me. I have a 72-year-old father and 70-year-old mom. I must carry them and I am exhausted. It's going on…

Original source: https://www.cbsnews.com/moneywatch/