‘Extremely risky operations’: Rescuers work amid threat of river banks bursting

Rescuers keep pushing into unstable zones along the Nepal-Tibet border where a flood-formed lake sits upstream and could burst its banks at any time. Nearly 3,000 people are still listed missing and the confirmed death count sits at 682 after the flash floods and landslides. The immediate next steps are continued search-and-recovery flights and ground teams working only in short windows when the lake level looks stable. The situation stays high-risk until engineers either drain the lake in controlled stages or the water finds its own way out without wiping out downstream villages. No major change in missing-person numbers or rescue pace is likely until that lake threat is removed or the banks hold through the next heavy rain cycle. Next rung likely comes when lake-monitoring teams report either a controlled drop in water level or a sudden surge that forces full evacuation downstream. Horizon: at least 7-10 more days of risky ops unless the lake breaks or is drained first.