At least one Briton believed to be victim of Nepal earthquake
The Foreign Office said this afternoon it was trying to verify reports that a non-UK resident British national was among more than 5,000 people killed in the Nepalese earthquake.
It is understood that up to 40 Britons are still missing in Nepal following Saturday’s earthquake, which devastated the capital Kathmandu and many remote villages.
An avalanche on Mount Everest also killed at least 18 people, including foreign climbers and local guides. A further 200 – including several Britons – were stranded on the mountain, where 42 teams were attempting to reach the summit. These are now thought to have been brought down to Base Camp.
Around 250 people are reported missing following another avalanche in the Raswa trekking region, close to Kathmandu.
The Foreign Office said its staff were ‘working round the clock’ to identify and assist British nationals in Nepal.
Several Britons living or travelling in Nepal have got in touch with family to report that they are safe but a few are stranded in remote regions, waiting for helicopters to pick them up. Others have not been heard from since the quake.
In a statement just released, Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond said:"We’ve got a British Army Gurkha team, as you know, that was on Everest that is continuing to trek down the mountain and identifying and reporting British Nationals on the way as they go. We’ve also got Gurkhas from the Gurkha Training Base in Nepal who are assisting the local authorities.
"We are urgently investigating unconfirmed reports of a non-UK resident British National having been killed and our teams on the ground will report back as soon as they have any further information on that.
"I’ve spoken to the Nepalese Prime Minister this morning to assure him of our commitment to see what other assistance Nepal urgently needs. We have a C-17 loaded with British Army Gurkha engineers and equipment in the region. We also have a DFID chartered Boeing 767 loaded with rescue teams and supplies. They’re both waiting for landing slots when the weather at Kathmandu permits. They will be in and operating as soon as possible.
"In the meantime we have already got some UK personnel in on other flights and there are 60 British personnel, search and rescue teams and other experts already on the ground delivering assistance. We’ll hold a COBR meeting tomorrow which I will chair to take stock of where we are and to look at further assistance needs of the Nepalese government."
Linsey McNeill
Editor Linsey McNeill has been writing about travel for more than three decades. Bylines include The Times, Telegraph, Observer, Guardian and Which? plus the South China Morning Post. She also shares insider tips on thetraveljournalist.co.uk
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