Budhi Gandaki Flood Sweeps Away Bridges and Dozens of Homes in Nepal's Gorkha District

FLOOD TEARS THROUGH GORKHA

A sudden surge on the Budhi Gandaki river swept away several bridges and dozens of houses in Nepal's Gorkha district on October 11, prompting authorities to urge residents of riverside settlements to move to higher ground.

Police counted at least two suspension footbridges and a steel bridge destroyed in the initial assessment, including a crossing at Arughat that links Dhading and Gorkha districts. Local officials put the toll higher, with one assistant chief district officer citing six bridges gone, among them two motorable crossings and four suspension bridges.

LANDSLIDE SUSPECTED AS TRIGGER

Authorities said they received preliminary reports of a landslide above Sirdibas in the Chumnubri area before the flood hit. Local residents suspect the Syar stream, a tributary of the Budhi Gandaki, was blocked by the slide and then broke loose, sending a wall of water and debris downstream.

Footage circulating from the district showed a steel arch bridge over the river buckling and collapsing into the floodwaters within seconds, one of several crossings lost along the basin on the day.

HOMES AND ACCESS CUT OFF

The flood destroyed an estimated 35 houses, according to local reporting, and left some communities without any route out. The deputy chair of one affected area said a cantilever bridge near Lokpa was also swept away, cutting off the lower Chum area entirely, with officials saying the route would need to be rebuilt using wooden ladders and ropes in the short term.

Reports on casualties have varied through the day. Some accounts put the number of missing as high as ten, while police said in a separate update that no deaths had been confirmed as search efforts continued.

RIVER STILL ABOVE DANGER LEVEL

The Budhi Gandaki remained above its danger mark and continued to fluctuate through the day, and officials renewed calls for people living along the river to relocate temporarily. A full damage assessment is still underway, and authorities have asked residents with information on missing people to contact the district's emergency hotline.