Family members in Nepal frantically searching for their missing loved ones were seen streaming into Bharatpur Hospital in Chitwan district on Sunday (August 30) in an attempt to check if any of the recovered bodies could be identified.
Workers wearing protective suits carried body bags on stretchers into the building, while relatives packed a hall as they tried to identify their missing loved ones from photographs of bodies displayed on a screen.
READ: Rescuers dig into tunnel as missing toll from Nepal, China flood nears 3,000
"I have already gone to many places, including Nuwakot and Trishuli, to look for him, but so far, we have not been able to identify anyone. I have been searching for him for the past three or four days without getting any sleep," said Suman Bajgain, whose younger brother has been missing since the day of the flooding disaster.
Triggered by a glacier collapse, a torrent of rock, ice, mud and debris hurtled through mountain river systems on Wednesday (August 26), killing at least 750 people, with more than 3,000 missing on both sides of the Nepal-China border. It swept away buildings, bridges and power stations.
The Red Cross has estimated that more than 90,000 people are likely to have been affected by the disaster, which China has linked to the effects of climate change.
Some bodies have decomposed beyond recognition and will be buried after legal formalities because of health risks and a fear of disease outbreaks, according to authorities.
Authorities are photographing the bodies, collecting DNA samples and recording identifying details in the hope that families may still be able to identify relatives after burial.
(Camera and Production: Yubaraj Sharma, Sahana Bajracharya; Editing: Mark Ho Writing: Mark Ho)