Bloomfield couple missing after deadly flooding near Nepal-Tibet border

✅A Bloomfield couple was reported missing after catastrophic flooding

✅The disaster has killed hundreds near the Nepal-Tibet border and left thousands missing

✅The couple's 9-year-old son is staying with family in India

BLOOMFIELD — A Bloomfield couple is missing following massive flooding near the Nepal-Tibet border, as rescuers continue searching through mud and debris left behind by a deadly flash flood.

Bimalbhai Patel and his wife, Jaiminaben Patel, were reported missing following the disaster, Bloomfield Mayor Jenny Mundell said Thursday.

The couple's family told ABC 7 Eyewitness News they were on a religious retreat. Their 9-year-old son is with family in India.

"The Township of Bloomfield stands ready to support the family should they need it. I have also been in touch with the office of Governor Mikie Sherrill who let us know they are on alert and ready to support families in New Jersey who have been impacted by this tragedy," Mundell said.

Nepal's disaster management authority said Friday that the number of people reported missing after a flash flood along the Himalayan border between Nepal and China has doubled to 1,924.

The update came as rescuers worked through mud and debris in areas devastated by Wednesday's disaster. The death toll has risen to 579.

China state broadcaster CCTV says five people have died and 558 remained missing.

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Damage is seen in the aftermath of flash floods in Devighat in the Nuwakot district in Nepal, Thursday, Aug. 27, 2026.

New Jersey family caught in deadly disaster

U.S. officials report about 90 U.S. citizens re/main unaccounted for.

The U.S. State Department says it is not aware of any U.S. deaths, but three Americans have been rescued.

The scale of the disaster has made it difficult to determine the fate of many people caught in the flooding, including travelers who were in the region for religious pilgrimages.

Many of those missing were on a pilgrimage to Mount Kailash in Tibet, a sacred site for Hindus and Buddhists.

Indian spiritual guru Jaggi Vasudev, also known as Sadhguru, says 77 people from his Isha Foundation were at an immigration center in Tibet when the floods struck. The foundation said 22 were Americans.

It's not known if the Patels were on the pilgrimage.

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