NEW DELHI: In the four weeks since the deadly floods in Nepal, search operations for 6,000 missing people continued as authorities on Sunday said the death toll from last month’s devastating flash floods had crossed 1,450.

On the morning of 26 August 2026, a series of flash floods which originated near the Nepal-Tibet border came gushing down with debris flows that first destroyed the Gyirong Port on the China–Nepal border and struck dozens of settlements along a 72 km stretch of the Trishuli River in Nepal.

The flood path, destroyed homes and buildings and devastated towns and villages in the northern and central parts of the Himalayan country. People, their homes, vehicles, roads and bridges were swept away in a matter of minutes as the Bhotekoshi River carried the floodwaters downstream. Nepal continues to reel from the after-effects of the floods, which not only claimed lives but also damaged significant infrastructure, including hydropower projects.

According to a statement by the Nepal Police, the death toll from the August 26 flash floods has reached 1,451 as rescuers recovered more bodies from all the affected areas.

The highest number comes from Chitwan district, where authorities recovered 367 bodies, the statement said. Another 236 bodies were recovered from Rasuwa, 232 from Nawalparasi East and 222 from Nawalparasi West. The Nepal Police further said that 203 bodies were recovered from Nuwakot, 79 from Gorkha, 72 from Dhading and 38 from Tanahu. Two people died in a Kathmandu hospital during treatment.

So far, nearly 1,300 bodies have been temporarily buried after their DNA samples were collected, officials said. Only 110 of the recovered bodies have been handed over to families after identification. Rescuers have recovered 17 bodies from the Upper Trishuli-1 hydropower project in Rasuwa, trapped in a reinforcement mesh and buried in mud. Rescuers used grinders, gas cutters and rotary equipment to recover the bodies.

Authorities have estimated that about 6,000 people remain missing in Nepal, with search operations underway. River stretches, debris fields and damaged hydropower projects in Rasuwa and neighbouring districts are being combed to trace the missing persons nearly a month after the floods devastated Nepal.

While rescue work continues, identifying the bodies has emerged as a challenge. Many of the bodies that swept downstream have been decomposed, damaged or recovered only in parts, making them difficult to identify.