Seventeen dead and hundreds unaccounted for as flash flood hits Nepal-Tibet border

At least 17 people have been killed and nearly 400 others are unaccounted for after a flash flood and mudslide along the Nepal-Tibet border washed away villages and damaged roads and infrastructure.The flood hit early on Wednesday in Rasuwa, just north of Nepal's capital Kathmandu, with preliminary information suggesting it was caused by an earthquake triggering an avalanche with melted snow pouring into the Bhote Koshi river.Search operations are under way on both sides of the border between Tibet and Nepal and 12 people have been rescued so far. State media in China, which controls Tibet, say there are significant casualties and Nepalese officials said they anticipate "huge scale loss". The Nepal tourism board said work was under way to establish the whereabouts of 291 tourists and 93 Nepalese nationals, including guides, who were known to be in the area where the flood hit.They include 12 travellers from the UK as well as Americans, Malaysians, South Africans and Indians.Videos show floodwater crashing through villages. Nepal Police spokesman Abhi Narayan Kaphle told the BBC that all security agencies were working together on rescue efforts.Several areas downstream of the Bhote ...