On the night of 17 June 2023, early in the monsoon, heavy rain sent a flood down the Hewa Khola in Sankhuwasabha district, eastern Nepal. It swept through the camp of the under-construction Super Hewa Khola hydropower project; by 19 June, 22 people were still missing, most of them workers.
In short: Floods and landslides also hit neighbouring districts. The disaster raised questions about building hydropower camps on riverbanks in steep Himalayan valleys.
Monsoon and mountain rivers
The same pattern of sudden floods has struck Melamchi, Thame and the Bhotekoshi. Sankhuwasabha is the gateway to the Makalu Base Camp trek.