Kathmandu, Aug. 31 -- Hours after the Bhotekoshi floods swept away settlements in Rasuwa and Nuwakot districts on Wednesday morning, social media platforms were inundated with dramatic clips purporting to show the destruction.

Some depicted genuine disasters, but from other countries or earlier events. Others were digitally manipulated. Several appeared to have been created entirely by artificial intelligence.

The scale and speed of misinformation has complicated an already chaotic information environment at a time when families are desperately searching for missing relatives and authorities are struggling to establish the full extent of the disaster.

For social media users chasing views and virality, the flood has also become lucrativ...