News24 | Four South Africans reportedly missing in Nepal flooding

An aerial view shows houses lying deluged in sludge after flash floods at Devighat, Bidur Municipality in Nepal's Nuwakot district on 27 August 2026.

Prabin Ranabhat/AFP

• Four South Africans are reportedly missing following flooding in Nepal.
• Two couples are among the hundreds of tourists unaccounted for, according to Gift of the Givers.
• Government is still confirming how many South Africans have been affected.

Four South Africans have reportedly gone missing during flooding in Nepal, although South African authorities say they are still trying to confirm the reports.

Gift of the Givers founder, Dr Imtiaz Sooliman, said that the organisation was contacted by a South African woman who said that her parents were missing. A tour guide confirmed to Gift of the Givers that a second South African couple is also reportedly missing.

The Department of International Relations and Cooperation (Dirco) is attempting to confirm the reports of missing South Africans, said departmental spokesperson Chrispin Phiri.

News24 previously reported that more than 380 tourists, mostly foreigners, were out of contact in Nepal on Wednesday after a massive flood tore through the border region with Tibet.

Several bodies have been recovered in the floods, according to police, but it was unclear if any of them were connected to the uncontacted tourists.

READ | Over 380 tourists missing after flood tears through Nepal’s border with Tibet

Images shared by Nepali police showed floodwater surging through a river, sweeping away houses in its path, while AFP images depicted the top floor of a house sticking out from muddy soil.

“Thousands of homes, shopping malls and businesses have been washed away. Helicopter surveillance is the only means of access, as all roads have been totally destroyed, but landing is not currently possible, as there is no solid ground given the height of the water level. We are aware of other South Africans in the region, but they are safe,” said Sooliman.

The organisation said Ahmed Bham, its head of search and rescue, was in communication with the Nepalese Disaster Management, with whom it has a relationship, after responding to the Nepal Earthquake in 2015.

“They suggest that teams should remain on standby and not travel as the government has not made a call for international assistance as yet, but that may be forthcoming once the true scale of the disaster is manifest in daylight hours,” Sooliman said.

In addition, there is a significant risk that a dam may collapse as a secondary effect, putting teams at enormous risk.

This was confirmed by Nepal police, who warned that a natural dam upstream on the Chinese border had not fully drained, meaning the flood risk along the Bhote Koshi and Trishuli rivers remains active.

भोटेकोसी नदी रसुवामा तिब्बत तर्फबाट ठुलो बाढी प्रवेश गरेकोले अर्को सूचना नआउँदासम्म त्रीशुली नदीको तटिय क्षेत्रका जिल्लाहरु नुवाकोट, धादिङ, चितवन, गोरखा लगायतका स्थानहरूमा उच्च सतर्कता सहित सुरक्षित स्थानमा रहन अनुरोध छ। pic.twitter.com/Zun6icZZCM

— Nepal Police (@NepalPoliceHQ) August 26, 2026

At least 19 people were killed in Nepal on Wednesday after the flood tore through the border region with Tibet, a police spokesperson told AFP.

“Nineteen bodies have been recovered so far. We are intensely coordinating the rescue and relief efforts. Many in our police force are also out of contact,” spokesperson Abi Narayan Kafle said.

Reuters reported that at least 348 travellers – including 105 Indians, 93 Nepalis, three US citizens, and 12 British citizens – have been reported missing.

Eight South Korean nationals working on a hydropower plant were also unaccounted for, along with four South Africans, 17 Malaysian nationals, and one person each from Australia and the Netherlands.

Gift of the Givers has a team on standby to assist, should it be needed, if the Nepalese government calls for international assistance.

A woman looks at the building that was damaged along the swollen Trishuli River following a massive flash flood triggered by an avalanche of ice and rock in the upper Lhende River on the Tibetan side.

Skanda Gautam/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images

“In the meantime, Gift of the Givers has 11 urban search and water rescue team members ready for deployment, as well as four SAPS dog handlers and four dogs authorised by the deputy national police commissioner, Lieutenant General Tebello Mosikili.

“We are in touch with the Nepalese Embassy in SA, [which is] prepared to process visas with immediate effect, but we are holding on until a call for international assistance is made. The disaster site is 125km from the capital Kathmandu; all operations will be managed from here by the military,” said Sooliman.

Several road closures have been implemented, including on the Prithvi Highway – a major route connecting the affected region to Kathmandu. The highway is fully blocked due to flood debris, police said.

Torrential floods swallowed roads, bridges, houses, and power projects in Nepal's border areas and triggered a mudslide that hit Gyirong Port, a major land crossing with neighbouring Tibet, cutting off roads, communications, and power links to the area.