Nepal avalanche on Himlung Himal leaves two dead and 12 missing

Rescuers in north-central Nepal are searching for 12 people missing after an avalanche struck Mount Himlung, killing at least two people and injuring or displacing others during severe weather. The avalanche hit a base camp on Himlung Himal, a 7,126-metre peak in Manang district, as teams were preparing for foreign clients to arrive for the autumn climbing season. At least 10 people have been rescued, while the bodies of the two people who died were airlifted to Kathmandu on Monday.

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Tul Singh Gurung, president of the Nepal National Mountain Guide Association, said two bodies were found as rescuers worked until 6pm local time on Sunday. He said the search was continuing for 14 expedition workers who were still missing, although the supporting report also said 12 people were being searched for. A team of eight mountain guides is involved in the operation, and all those killed or missing were Nepali nationals.

The remains were taken to Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital after arriving at Kathmandu airport. The avalanche came as heavy rainfall triggered flooding and landslides in Manang district over the weekend, according to the district administration. The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority said severe weather warnings had been issued across the Himalayan country.

It also said 21 other people were killed and five more were missing in different parts of Nepal between Thursday and Sunday, underlining the wider scale of the weather-related emergency. The incident adds to a difficult period for Nepal, where mountain travel, seasonal climbing and weather-related disasters are closely linked. Himlung Himal is part of the Himalayan range that draws expedition teams during the autumn season, when climbing activity typically increases.

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The combination of avalanche risk, flooding and landslides has made rescue work more difficult and has raised concern about conditions across remote mountain districts. Nepal has also been recovering from devastating flooding in August, when several villages were swept away and more than 1,400 people were killed, according to the supporting report. The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority said thousands remained missing and many had been rescued in that earlier disaster.

Researchers from the World Weather Attribution group said last week that the broader crisis was shaped by long-term warming, glacier retreat, permafrost thaw and geological instability rather than a single extreme weather event. What remains unclear is the condition of the missing expedition workers and whether the search will be able to continue without interruption as weather conditions change. It is also not yet clear how many people were at the base camp when the avalanche struck, beyond the confirmed rescues and missing figures.

The next developments are likely to depend on the progress of the mountain-guides' search team and any further official updates from disaster authorities.

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