BRIDGE SNAPS: Raging Flood Waters Tears Down Bridge in Nepal Caught On Video
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Handheld video from Gorkha district in Nepal shows the muddy Budhi Gandaki River surging violently under and around a metal truss bridge near Arughat, steadily eating away at its supports until the structure collapses into the flood. The post identifies the bridge as the Soti Khola bridge, though that name has not been independently confirmed. An earlier clip from the same account shows massive dark debris flows and whirlpools carrying boulders past riverside houses and settlements. The footage captures the sudden, brutal force of a flash flood that left even solid infrastructure with no chance.
The flood struck on October 11, when authorities say a landslide upstream temporarily blocked the river before the water broke through. Officials report that it swept away around 35 to 40 houses and at least six bridges, damaged hydropower sites, left several people missing, and forced evacuations downstream. The region was already on edge, since a flood on the Therang stream in September had destroyed houses and a bridge on the Manaslu trekking route and prompted alerts along the Budhi Gandaki. With rescue and search efforts still underway, the collapse of another vital crossing raises fresh worries about isolated mountain communities that depend on a handful of bridges to reach the rest of the country.