Massive landslide in Nepal dumps ridge into river, 14 dead

A huge landslide in northern Nepal sent an entire ridge crashing into a river and blocked the channel, officials and footage from the area show. The disaster is part of a string of floods and slides that have struck the country in recent days.

Authorities say 14 people have died in the latest round of flooding and landslides. Video circulating online captures a vast slope giving way and cascading into the valley below, where the river was choked by debris before the water eventually found a path and resumed flowing.

Kali Gandaki briefly dammed by debris

The Kali Gandaki river was reported to be completely blocked by the landslide deposits; eyewitness video shows the water pooled behind the blockage until it forced a way through the sediment. Emergency teams are monitoring downstream communities for further flooding risk.

Social media posts shared from the scene included a short message describing the scale of the collapse: "NEW - Massive landslide hits Nepal, huge mountain collapses into river pic.twitter.com/8vNSzjT4ss".

Heavy seasonal rains and unstable slopes have made many parts of Nepal vulnerable to such incidents in recent weeks, and rescuers continue to search affected areas. The full extent of damage and any possible further casualties remains under assessment.

Photo: press material from the event