Morgues across several districts in Nepal are struggling to accommodate the bodies recovered after devastating flash floods swept through the Bhotekoshi region on Wednesday.
At least 543 people have died, while bodies carried downstream from Rasuwa and Nuwakot have been recovered as far away as Chitwan, Tanahun, Gorkha and Nawalparasi. With hospitals and morgues running short of space, authorities have begun using temporary facilities to store the remains.
Unused buildings converted into morgues
Morgues in Nuwakot, Dhading and Nawalparasi have reached capacity, prompting officials to transfer bodies to neighbouring districts, including Pokhara.
In Chitwan, an unused building in Bharatpur is being converted into a temporary storage facility. District authorities said existing hospital morgues could accommodate only 30 to 50 bodies, while the temporary centre is expected to hold around 250.
If that capacity is exceeded, authorities plan to use the electric crematorium at Devghat. The facility will be repaired and equipped with air conditioners, while dry ice will be used to slow decomposition.
Pokhara morgues already above capacity
Pokhara has also received bodies from several flood-hit districts. As many as 93 bodies have been transported there from Tanahun, Gorkha, Nawalparasi East and Dhading.
Kaski chief district officer Kuman Singh Gurung said hospitals in the district could collectively accommodate 88 bodies. The Pokhara Academy of Health Sciences alone has space for 72.
“By the numbers, we are already above capacity,” Gurung said. “We have managed to accommodate them for now. If more bodies arrive, we will have to coordinate with nearby districts.”
Bodies are being stored at temperatures between 2 and 6 degree Celsius.
“Bodies can be kept like this for about 10 days to two weeks,” Sushil Aryal, information officer at Pokhara Academy of Health Sciences, said. “If they need to be stored for longer, infrastructure capable of maintaining sub-zero temperatures is required. Pokhara does not currently have such a facility.”
QR codes and DNA samples aid identification
With many victims yet to be identified, police are photographing bodies, collecting fingerprints and DNA samples and conducting post-mortems. Images of identifiable remains are also being released to help families locate missing relatives.
“If relatives cannot be located or the bodies identified, we cannot keep them indefinitely because fingerprints and DNA samples are collected beforehand,” Kaski police chief Superintendent of Police Nabin Karki said.
Authorities are also using body tags and QR codes to help maintain records and trace remains.
Fresh flood warning disrupts rescue work
Nepal Police issued another flood warning on Friday, leading to evacuations in the Trishuli area. Rescue operations and road work were halted in vulnerable locations, with vehicles and personnel moved to safer areas.
“The water level is about to rise, so everyone is being stopped. The vehicles that were engaged in the operation are all returning. They are all coming back. Everyone is being evacuated from there and is being taken to a safe location. All the work has stopped. Even worse flooding is yet to come; that is why everyone is being put on alert," Nepal Police officer P Chaudhary said.
The warning followed information that a dam on the Tibet side had burst again.
Meanwhile, the Nepali Army rescued two workers trapped inside a hydropower tunnel in Rasuwa. Prime Minister Balendra Shah chaired a Cabinet meeting on Friday to review the government’s response to the disaster.