Himal Press 
KATHMANDU: The total death toll from the devastating Bhotekoshi flood has crossed 1,200.
According to the latest official update of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority (NDRRMA), recovery teams have retrieved 1,204 bodies as of 6 p.m. on Wednesday.
A total of 348 bodies were recovered in Chitwan, 217 in Nawalparasi East, 202 in Nawalparasi West, 155 in Nuwakot, 115 in Rasuwa, 69 in Gorkha, 60 in Dhading and 38 in Tanahun. Only 95 bodies have been formally identified and handed over to families so far, according to the NDRRMA.
Meanwhile, 4,216 people are still missing. The list of missing people includes 583 foreign nationals, 164 Nepali guides and trekking staff and around 900 workers of different hydropower projects. Similarly, 45 Nepali Army personnel, 25 Nepal Police personnel, 13 Armed Police Force personnel, 14 customs office employees, three quarantine office employees, three Langtang National Park employees and three immigration office employees are also missing. Seven elected representatives, 32 local government employees, and one private school teacher are also unaccounted for.
The government has deployed 21,314 personnel for search and rescue operations in the flood-hit areas. According to the latest update, 9,199 from the Nepal Army, 7,912 from the Nepal Police, and 4,203 from the Armed Police Force are involved in the search and rescue operation.
Studies suggest a rock-ice avalanche from the northern slope of Mt Langtang Lirung in Nepal triggered the flood in Lhende Khola. The stream meets the Kerung River at the Nepal-China border at Rasuwagadhi and becomes Bhotekoshi. The river is known downstream as Trishuli.
