BP Highway Closed for Eight Hours After Flooding; Search for Missing Woman Underway

The BP Highway remained closed for over eight hours after the Roshi stream, swollen by heavy rainfall, swept away a temporary diversion at Mapti on Monday night, halting all vehicular movement in the area.

According to the District Police Office, the diversion — built following last September’s severe floods — was completely eroded by the flooded stream. Efforts to restore traffic flow are currently underway.

Min Bahadur Ghale, Information Officer at the District Police Office, said that the floodwaters damaged the road section leading to Mangaltar from Roshi Rural Municipality–12. A team of police personnel and local residents have been working together to clear the debris and reopen the road for one-way traffic.

Seventeen passengers were left stranded due to the sudden disruption and were later rescued by local police.

Meanwhile, the search continues for a woman who went missing during the flood. Renuka Giri, 33, of Subbagaon in Panauti Municipality–5, was swept away by the flooded Dhalmale rivulet at around 6:00 PM on Monday while returning home from a local festival.

Search operations were temporarily halted after midnight due to poor visibility but resumed early Tuesday morning. Deputy Superintendent of Police Ghale confirmed that a joint team of Nepal Police, Nepali Army, and Armed Police Force has been mobilized in the search effort.

The sudden rainfall also caused inundation in the Panauti Bus Park area, adding to the challenges faced by rescue and recovery teams.