British national among 119 rescued in Nepal as flood death toll exceeds 1,000, army says

A British national has been rescued in Nepal alongside 118 Nepalese people, nearly a week after catastrophic flooding killed more than 1,000 people across the Himalayan nation, an army spokesperson said.

The British citizen has not yet been formally identified. Earlier reports indicated that 33 British nationals were listed as missing after floodwaters surged across the Nepal-Tibet border and tore through mountain valleys.

Among those rescued, 44 were women and 74 were men, the Nepalese army spokesperson added.

The flood disaster, triggered by intense monsoon rain and, according to local officials, severely worsened by climate-driven glacial melt, has left more than 3,900 people unaccounted for. The missing include over 600 workers believed to have been trapped in a vast network of mud-filled tunnels at hydropower construction sites along the Trishuli River. Prime Minister Balendra Shah said Monday that 279 people have been rescued from those sites so far.

International rescue efforts are being spearheaded by Chinese and Nepalese military personnel, with experts from India, Korea and Australia also taking part. But rescue teams face severe challenges, as landslides have cut off roads and communication lines in some of the worst-affected regions.

The disaster has renewed scrutiny on Nepal's rapid hydropower expansion and the mounting risks posed by climate change, as scientists warn that warming temperatures are making South Asia's monsoon more erratic and accelerating glacier retreat in the Himalayas. The full scale of the loss will likely take weeks to assess, officials say.

This is a developing story. More details will be added as they become available.