Nepal flood LIVE: Fears of second tsunami as lake breaks its banks and locals run for high ground as rescue efforts are halted

Nepali authorities have said a dammed lake over the border in Tibet has broken its banks, two days after a flash flood hit the region.

Helicopter rescue operations have now been stopped, according to Reuters, and locals have been witnessed rushing up a hill to reach higher ground.

‘Information has been received that a water dam has burst again on the Tibetan side,’ police said in a statement.

‘All security personnel, rescue workers, and the general public deployed in rescue and relief operations are requested to remain alert and immediately move to a safe location/report the incident.’

Narendra Pariyar, the most senior bureaucrat of the district, said on Friday: ‘We can see that the level of water in the river is rising,’ he said, adding that it is unclear how high the water level is at present.

Earlier this morning, rescue operations in the area were suspended after the lake began to overflow.

Nepali and Chinese authorities had warned of further flooding from the lake that formed upstream after Wednesday’s disaster and was already overflowing.

Nepalese authorities have now confirmed that 538 people died due to Wednesday’s flash floods.

This is an update from the previous death toll of 489 given a few hours ago.

A video has emerged believed to show the moment a massive landslide plummeted into Nepal, causing a devastating flood to sweep through Nepal’s Rasuwa region.

The footage is believed to have been captured by a tourist flying a drone over the landscape

Nepal declined foreign assistance for search-and-rescue operations, its foreign ministry said.

This follows the offer of help from several countries, including the UK.

Saying Nepal was managing the rescue efforts, a spokesman added: ‘The offer for help is natural. Our security agencies are doing the search and rescue operation. For now we don’t require such help.’

It comes as hundreds of foreign nationals are still missing.

The Kathmandu Post reported that India, China, the United States, Britain, Japan, South Korea, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh had asked the government to allow their search-and-rescue teams to assist in the operation.

Nepal’s Rasuwa district has become ‘physically totally disconnected’ after flooding swept through and destroyed the region, according to authorities.

‘We have not been able to get there, it takes time for us to assess the scale of the damage,’ Bikram Timilsina, the country’s information minister, told the BBC.

‘Only by helicopter have we been able to rescue people.’

A Red Cross official in Nepal has warned of a second tsunami, saying: ‘We are very concerned about risk of secondary flood’.

‘We believe that at least 93,000 people have been affected and are in great need,’ they added.

The missing family of four from Cobham, Surrey, were reportedly on a pilgrimage in Nepal after they landed from the UK on Tuesday.

It is understood the trip came after their son ‘got amazing grades at A levels’ and their daughter celebrated her 13th birthday.

A neighbour told The Times: ‘The son got amazing grades at A levels so as part of that they wanted to pay their homage to God.

‘As a family they were always on the go and the husband was always travelling around the world to places as far away as Australia.’

The family visited India every year for a family holiday, it was reported, but this year chose to visit Nepal to go on a pilgrimage.

The mother and daughter is believed to have British citizenship while the father and son have Irish citizenship.

Search and rescue operations have resumed in Nepal after they were halted over fears of second tsunami, an army spokesman said.

Nepal’s authorities said they are faced with a growing challenge to identify the bodies of victims taken downstream by the floods – and then house them.

Some bodies were found more than 320km (200 miles) away from their homes, local outlet The Kathmandu Post reported.

Meanwhile, bodies are being sent to neighbouring districts as morgues in Nuwakot, Dhading and Nawalparasi are running out of space.

Chinese President Xi Jinping offered Beijing’s help in Nepal’s rescue operations on Friday, state media said, after deadly flooding at their shared border.

‘China is willing to actively assist Nepal in its rescue efforts and provide support and aid to the best of its ability,’ President Xi said in a condolence message to Nepal’s president, according to state broadcaster CCTV.

The Chinese embassy in Nepal has also deployed a team to assist with rescue efforts, according to Chinese Ambassador to Nepal Zhang Maoming.

‘China stands firmly with Nepal at this difficult time,’ Mr Zhang told Nepal’s state-run NTV World. ‘We have been working closely with the Nepali side and supporting each other in responding to the disaster’.

Five people have died in Tibet due to flash floods and landslides on Wednesday.

Chinese state media said 558 people are currently missing in the region.