Specialized crews deploy thermal drones and 3D terrain mapping across Trishuli and Rasuwa to assist local disaster authorities
KATHMANDU — Specialist teams from the United Arab Emirates have tracked down six people who went missing after catastrophic flooding swept through central Nepal, emergency officials confirmed on Thursday.
The rescues were carried out around the Trishuli River basin, where emergency personnel continue to comb landslide-choked ravines and fast-flowing river corridors in difficult mountainous terrain.
The UAE Search and Rescue Team is conducting joint search operations with Nepalese disaster response agencies in the badly affected districts of Rasuwa and Trishuli. Both regions have seen extensive structural damage, severe mudslides, and disrupted road networks following torrential seasonal downpours.
To navigate the unstable landscapes, field personnel are operating aerial surveillance drones equipped for thermal imaging and three-dimensional mapping. The aerial surveys allow response teams to model disrupted topography, spot survivors stranded across cut-off riverbanks, and direct ground squads through hazardous zones.
Hammoud Al Afari, Director of UAE Relief Operations, said emergency crews remain deployed in close coordination with local authorities to expedite the search for remaining missing residents and deliver immediate field support.
The deployment is part of a broader humanitarian airlift and field operation dispatched by the UAE to bolster Nepal’s emergency response apparatus. Alongside specialized search personnel, the mission is coordinating emergency supply drops and basic medical aid to rural communities cut off by flood damage.
Nepalese security forces, including the armed police and army engineers, have faced acute logistical constraints in clearing mountain passes blocked by debris. UAE teams plan to sustain active technical and ground search missions in the Himalayan foothills as river levels fluctuate and risk assessments continue.
