Nepal flash floods: 3 more bodies recovered from Gandak river in UP’s Kushinagar

13 bodies have been recovered from the Gandak river system in Kushinagar and Maharajganj districts so far

Three more bodies, including those of two men and a woman, were recovered from the Gandak river in Uttar Pradesh’s Kushinagar district on Saturday amid devastating floods in Nepal.

NDRF personnel pulled out three more bodies from the Gandak river in Kushinagar district on August 29. (HT photo)

With this, the number of bodies recovered from the Gandak river system in Kushinagar and Maharajganj districts has risen to 13 over the past three days, including seven in Kushinagar and six in Maharajganj.

Suspected to have been swept downstream from the neighbouring country, the bodies prompted authorities to launch efforts to establish the identities of the deceased.

Confirming this, additional district magistrate of Kushinagar, Vaibhav Mishra said they were spotted between Thokar numbers 2 and 4 on Saturday morning. National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) personnel subsequently retrieved the bodies, which have been kept for identification. District authorities have also informed their counterparts in Nepal about the recoveries.

On Friday night, police said the body of another woman was recovered from Barrage Pier Number 3 near Sukrauli. Khadda SHO Sandeep Kumar Singh said officials reached the spot and initiated efforts to establish the identity of the deceased.

Authorities suspect that strong flood currents from Nepal swept some bodies into Indian territory. Officials are maintaining contact with Nepalese authorities to ascertain whether the deceased are among those reported missing following the floods.

Barwa Patti station house officer Upendra Kumar said six police personnel have been deployed along the approximately 10-km Amwa embankment to monitor the Narayani river and keep a watch for bodies and other material being carried downstream. “The administration is fully alert,” Kumar said.

Earlier on Thursday, SSB and NDRF personnel recovered five bodies in Maharajganj and subsequently kept them in the mortuary for identification.