Mamdani Expresses NYC’s Solidarity With Nepali, Tibetan Communities After Devastating Floods as Death Toll Reaches 359 in Nepal
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani. Kara McCurdy | Mayoral Photography Office.
Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani issued a message of solidarity to New York City’s Nepali and Tibetan communities Thursday following catastrophic flash flooding along the Himalayan border between Nepal and Tibet that left hundreds dead and many more missing.
“Thousands of New Yorkers woke yesterday to devastating news from home,” Mamdani said in a social media statement posted Thursday morning. “Flooding along the Nepal-Tibet border has taken hundreds of lives, and the search for those still missing continues.”
The disaster, triggered by a glacier and ice-rock collapse in Tibet, sent violent torrents of water and debris surging into the Bhote Koshi and Trishuli rivers. The floods swept through border communities in Nepal’s Rasuwa district before rushing downstream into Nuwakot, Dhading, Gorkha, and Chitwan.
According to an official situation report released by Nepal Police on Thursday afternoon, the death toll has climbed to 359 recovered bodies. Authorities reported that 28 police personnel remain out of contact, while 8,348 police officers have been deployed to lead emergency search and rescue operations. Additionally, 63 injured victims are undergoing treatment at various hospitals across Kathmandu, including Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital and the National Trauma Center.
New York City is home to one of the largest Himalayan diaspora populations in North America, with vibrant Nepali and Tibetan communities largely concentrated in Queens neighborhoods like Jackson Heights, Woodside, and Elmhurst.
Acknowledging the heavy emotional toll the disaster has taken on immigrant families across the five boroughs, the mayor offered the city’s backing during the crisis.
“To our Nepali and Tibetan neighbors: this city knows what it means to grieve a place you left and still call home,” Mamdani wrote. “You are not carrying this alone. New York City stands with you.”
Local community organizations and diaspora groups across New York City have begun organizing outreach and emergency relief support, monitoring updates as rescue personnel in Nepal navigate destroyed bridges and severed communication lines to reach remote mountain areas.