Devastating floods on the Nepal-Tibet border region this week have killed at least 547 people, Nepal’s police said on Friday.
Chinese state media earlier confirmed five dead following Wednesday’s disaster, taking the total killed to at least 552.
More than 1,400 people are missing, including hundreds of foreigners.
The US Geological Survey said the disaster — the deadliest for Nepal since a 2015 earthquake — was caused by a glacial collapse that triggered a vast flow of icy debris.
In addition, Indian authorities recovered seven bodies from rivers flowing from Nepal, believed to be victims of the devastating floods, officials said Friday.
Authorities are working to identify the bodies, and the seven bodies in India are not included in the overall toll.
The deluge of ice and mud also caused huge pools of water to form, with one of these formations bursting on Friday in Tibet in a new threat to emergency workers scouring the region for survivors.
Nepali police urged all rescuers to “immediately move to a safe location,” saying it had received information that “a water dam has burst again on the Tibetan side”.
Separately in Tibet, China had earlier on Friday paused its rescue operation at the hardest-hit area of Gyirong over the risk of renewed flooding.
State broadcaster CCTV reported that a lake formed by immense piles of debris has begun overflowing towards the area that rescue teams were headed.
“So all rescue teams have been ordered to stand by in place and wait for further instructions,” it said, adding that emergency teams which had earlier accessed the area “have been ordered to withdraw one kilometer”.
At a meeting chaired by Chinese President Xi Jinping on Friday, leaders underlined “many hidden dangers of glaciers, ice lakes and geological disasters in the surrounding area” and warned that “rescue is facing great difficulties,” Xinhua reported.
