Nepal: Army rescues 321 people after climbing the Budhi Gandaki River

O nepal's army today rescued 321 people who were held back by the sudden rise of the Budhi Gandaki River in the center of the country due to the break of a natural dam after an avalanche in the Himalayas.

The military also transported over six tons of food and emergency supplies to Philim to assist hundreds of people affected by the situation.

The investigations of the International Center for Integrated Mountain Development attribute the rise of the river to a landslide, ice and stone in the high mountain.

Over 200 homes were destroyed, five bridges dragged by the waters and at least 674 displaced persons. Without mention of the dead, the whereabouts of five people are unknown.

The flood will have started at 04:00 locals, carrying clay, sediments and debris downstream.

Authorities have issued warnings to communities located along the Budhi Gandaki, Trishuli and Narayani rivers, but local media such as Kathmandu Post have reported that the population has been saved thanks to an informal network of communication between neighbors.

Witnesses specified that residents were notified by phone and Facebook at 4:45 p.m. and that the first warning from the police did not arrive until 5:30 p.m. and government SMS alerts were not received until 6:30 p.m., almost two hours after people had retired to the nearby woods.

Nepal suffered a similar situation in August, which caused at least 1,455 deaths and more than 5,000 missing, figures existing when the government completed active demand for people earlier this month.