International
oi-Swastika Sruti
There are some dire consequences from the recent flash floods that have wreaked havoc within the Bhotekoshi River basin in Nepal, which have resulted in a casualty count of at least 475 deaths. With the recovery of bodies continuing, the shortage of space in hospital morgues has become a huge problem.
Nepal’s Bhotekoshi River basin flash floods have resulted in at least 475 deaths, leading to overwhelmed morgues and the establishment of temporary storage facilities in Chitwan and Pokhara, while QR codes and DNA are used for victim identification.
The authorities are arranging some provisional centers to store the bodies as the morgues in some districts have reached their capacity limits.
Bodies Recovered Far From Flood-Hit Areas
The power of the floodwaters washed away corpses down the river from Rasuwa and Nuwakot, with corpses having been found in such districts as Chitwan, Tanahun, Gorkha and Nawalparasi.
As local hospitals have become unable to handle an increasing number of corpses, the corpses have started being moved to neighboring districts such as Pokhara.
The development has posed another problem for authorities who have been handling rescue operations, search for the missing persons and identification of corpses.
Temporary Morgue Being Set Up In Chitwan
In Chitwan, the authorities plan to transform an idle structure in Bharatpur as a temporary storage place for corpses.
According to Chitwan Chief District Officer Ganesh Aryal, the mortuaries in the hospitals in the district can jointly hold only about 30-50 bodies.
As per the reports in Nepalese media, the temporary storage facility would accommodate about 250 bodies.
If this storage place fails to accommodate extra bodies, then the plan is to resort to the electrical crematorium at Devghat.
The Bharatpur Metropolitan City would make necessary arrangements for the facility, including providing air conditioners and dry ice to reduce decomposition of the dead.
Bodies Being Kept At 2 To 6 Degrees Celsius
Authorities are also struggling to preserve bodies while identification and post-mortem procedures are carried out.
Sushil Aryal, information officer at Pokhara Academy of Health Sciences, said bodies were being stored at temperatures between 2 and 6 degrees Celsius.
He said remains could generally be kept under those conditions for around 10 days to two weeks. Longer storage would require facilities capable of maintaining temperatures below zero, which Pokhara currently does not have.
The hospital has body bags, protective equipment and staff to conduct post-mortems. However, the continued arrival of unidentified bodies could put further pressure on the system.
Pokhara Morgues Also Near Full Capacity
Pokhara has also become a major centre for storing bodies transferred from flood-hit districts.
A total of 93 bodies have reportedly been transported to Pokhara from Tanahun, Gorkha, Nawalparasi East and Dhading.
Kaski Chief District Officer Kuman Singh Gurung said hospitals in the district could collectively accommodate around 88 bodies.
The Pokhara Academy of Health Sciences alone has a capacity of about 72 bodies.
With the number already exceeding available capacity, officials are preparing to coordinate with neighbouring districts if more remains are recovered.
Community Hall Converted Into Temporary Morgue
The shortage has forced authorities to look for unconventional spaces.
A community forest hall in Kawasoti has been converted into a temporary morgue. An additional air conditioner has also been installed to help preserve the bodies.
The measures underline the scale of the challenge facing Nepal as bodies continue to emerge from rivers and flood-hit areas.
QR Codes And DNA Samples Used To Identify Victims
With many victims still unidentified, authorities have introduced additional measures to help families locate missing relatives.
Police are collecting photographs, fingerprints and DNA samples and conducting post-mortems.
Photographs of bodies that can be visually identified are also being released to help families determine whether their missing relatives are among those recovered.
Each body will receive a tag number, while information about its eventual burial will be recorded.
DNA samples will be sent to Kathmandu for testing if identification cannot be completed through other methods.
Authorities have also introduced a QR-code system to make it easier to track information about recovered victims.
Unclaimed Bodies May Be Buried In Designated Sites
Officials are also working with local governments to identify secure burial locations for bodies that remain unclaimed.
Kaski Police Chief Superintendent of Police Nabin Karki said authorities cannot keep unidentified bodies indefinitely, making proper documentation and DNA collection important for future identification.
The system is intended to ensure that even if a victim cannot immediately be identified, information about the remains can still be traced later.
Fresh Flood Alert Forces Trishuli Evacuations
The disaster response faced another setback on Friday after Nepal Police issued a fresh flood warning for the Trishuli area.
People were evacuated from vulnerable locations after authorities warned that water levels could rise.
Rescue operations and road work were temporarily stopped in some high-risk areas, while vehicles and personnel were moved to safer locations.
The warning reportedly followed a magnitude 5.1 earthquake in Sichuan, southwest China, along with information received by Nepal Police about another possible dam breach on the Tibet side.
Authorities asked residents, rescue workers and security personnel to move to safer locations amid fears of further flooding.
Nepal Army Rescues Workers From Hydropower Tunnel
The Nepali Army has also stepped up rescue operations at a hydropower project in Rasuwa, where workers were trapped inside a tunnel following the flooding.
Army personnel have so far rescued two workers from the site.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Balendra Shah chaired a Cabinet meeting at Singha Durbar on Friday to review the government’s response to the worsening disaster.
