Nepal seeks foreign aid but says its rescue teams coping
Chhetri said Nepal's security forces were capable of handling rescue operations, but the government would request specialised foreign expertise if needed.
An aerial view shows workers using excavators to clear sludge following flash floods at Trishuli in Nepal's Nuwakot district on August 27, 2026. (Photos by AFP)
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Nepal appealed Friday for international financial assistance after devastating floods near its border with Tibet, but said it was coping without foreign rescue teams.
"Our focus is on search and rescue right now," foreign ministry spokesman Lok Bahadur Chhetri told AFP.
An aerial view shows houses lying deluged in sludge after flash floods at Devighat, Bidur Municipality, along the confluence of the Trishuli and Tadi rivers in Nepal's Nuwakot district on August 27, 2026.
He said Nepal's security forces were capable of handling rescue operations, but the government would request specialised foreign expertise if needed.
"If Nepal needs any specialised help or expertise, then we will request it."
The prime minister's office has appealed for funds to help recover from the disaster, both domestic and international.
Floods and landslides struck the region on Wednesday, killing at least 482 people, while destroying homes, roads, bridges and hydropower infrastructure.
A member of the security forces and his sniffer dog search for survivors following flash floods at Trishuli in Nepal's Nuwakot district on August 27, 2026.
Chhetri said multiple countries and international organisations had pledged financial assistance.
"Several friendly countries and international organisations have pledged help and assistance, and it is in process," he said.
"We have felt tremendous goodwill for Nepal."
Nepal's mountainous terrain and difficult access to the flood-hit northern border area have complicated rescue efforts, but the country has experienced helicopter rescue pilots used to carrying out emergency flights in its Himalayan regions.
The country also faced challenges coordinating multiple foreign rescue teams after a devastating earthquake in 2015, when dozens of international teams arrived to help search for survivors.
A child looks at the photographs of missing people following flash floods, at a hospital in Kathmandu on August 28, 2026.