DALLAS - Over 100 people were killed and even more have been reported missing after flash flooding in northern Nepal on Wednesday, including multiple Americans and North Texas residents.
Nepal flooding disaster
Big picture view:
More than 400 deaths have been reported so far from flash flooding in northern Nepal, near the border of the Tibet region of China.
Nepalese officials reported thousands of people missing, including people from the United States, Australia, the United Kingdom, and Canada among those unaccounted for.
Images from Nepal’s Nuwakot district showed mud extending as high as the second floor of some buildings there. Debris hung from power lines and tree branches and vehicles sat buried. Survivors could be seen covered in mud.
Experts from the Kathmandu-based International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development noted the warming of the Himalayan region and told The Associated Press that an avalanche from a glacier likely caused the floods.
The U.S. Geological Survey reported a 5.2 magnitude earthquake centered approximately 40 miles north of Kathmandu.
The United Nations has asked for $2 billion for an initial response to the disaster, and much more will be needed over time.
Nepalese community in North Texas
Local perspective:
The Pew Research Center reports that the Dallas-Fort Worth region has the largest Nepalese population in the United States, and some of those missing in the flooding disaster hail from North Texas.
Shraddha Shrestha, the president of the Nepalese American Chamber of Commerce, tells FOX 4's Shaun Rabb the distance from Nepalese-Americans and their relatives back home has made it difficult to know if their family is safe or not.
"I know people who are not in contact because they do not have internet contact, and also people are assuming that, if they are not in reach, they might not be alive," Shrestha said.
"But we are also getting news from our families and communities that they have just lost battery power, or the internet was just lost, and some of the people are being evacuated out alive in good shape."
Shraddha Shreshtha
Shrestha asks all North Texans to help their Nepalese neighbors in any way they can.
"If you have Nepali friends, if you could just check in and see if they are doing ok right now," Shrestha continued. "It's really had to connect with our people back home and know their whereabouts."
What you can do:
You can donate to relief efforts in Nepal here.
The Source: Information in this story comes from interviews with North Texas Napalese leaders and FOX News reporting.