Malaysia Continues Search Efforts For 54 Citizens Unaccounted For Following Nepal Floods

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 22 – Malaysia is continuing diplomatic and tracing efforts to locate 54 citizens who remain uncontactable following severe flash floods and landslides in Nepal’s Rasuwa district on August 26, 2026, despite Nepalese authorities having called off official search and rescue (SAR) operations.

Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan stated that the Malaysian Embassy in Kathmandu remains in active contact with local authorities and trekking registration posts to review movement records and trace cell phone signals.

“Our embassy in Kathmandu is still working to contact local authorities and trekking centres and posts where people register for general tracking. We will continue our efforts to trace them until we reach a point where there is no further avenue left for us to pursue,” Mohamad said during Ministers’ Question Time in the Dewan Rakyat on Thursday, October 22, 2026.

He was responding to an inquiry from Datuk Mohd Suhaimi Abdullah (PN-Langkawi) regarding updates on missing Malaysians in the Himalayan country.

Disaster Impact, SMART Team Deployment, and Special Death Certificate Ordinance

Key updates regarding search efforts, legal documentation, and travel registration include:

• Disaster Missing Toll: Out of 5,285 total individuals reported missing following the August floods in Rasuwa, 636 are foreign nationals spanning 34 countries, including the 54 uncontactable Malaysians.
• SMART Relief Deployment: Malaysia previously deployed the Special Disaster Assistance and Rescue Team (SMART) from September 5 to 11 equipped with nine specialized drones, though steep mountain terrain and structural damage severely constrained operations.
• Special Death Certificate Ordinance: The Malaysian government is requesting a special ordinance from Nepal to shorten the waiting period for issuing official death certificates for missing disaster victims from 12 years to 45 days, enabling next of kin to settle estate claims, bank accounts, and insurance.
• Safely Returned Citizen: One Malaysian national previously reported uncontactable following the disaster safely returned home on October 2, 2026.
• e-Konsular Registration Drive: Mohamad urged all overseas Malaysian travelers to register their itineraries via the e-Konsular mobile application, noting that just over 6,000 citizens registered through the system in 2025 despite high volumes of outbound international travel.

–NMT