Landslide suspected of triggering flash floods in Budhi Gandaki River

Kathmandu: The Flood Forecasting Division has estimated that flash floods in the Budhi Gandaki River may have been triggered by a landslide that blocked the river upstream.

The division said there had been no significant rainfall in the river’s source area or surrounding regions to explain the sudden flooding.

Rajan Bhattarai, spokesperson for the Hydrology and Water Resources Research Center under the Water and Energy Commission Secretariat, said only sporadic rainfall had occurred in the area over the past 24 hours.

Based on preliminary information and satellite images, authorities suspect that a landslide in the upper reaches of the river blocked its flow, triggering the flash floods.