Kathmandu, Aug. 28 -- What happened?

A sudden and powerful flood swept through Nepal's northern border region on Wednesday morning, devastating communities along the Bhotekoshi river in Rasuwa and sending a wall of water and debris downstream.

The flood struck around Timure and Syaphrubesi, close to the Nepal-China border, damaging roads, bridges, buildings and other infrastructure before rushing into the Trishuli river system. The force of the flood swept away people, vehicles and structures, and cut off parts of the area.

Three days later, the disaster is still unfolding. Search teams are continuing to scour riverbanks and downstream settlements, while authorities are dealing with a rapidly growing number of bodies recovered far from...