Nepal villagers return after river waters freed

Thousands of villagers in Nepal are returning to their homes after a mountain river swept away debris from a landslide that had blocked it, allowing waters to flow normally again.

People gather at the site of a landslide north of Beni Bazaar. Thousands of people fled villages and towns along a mountain river in northwest Nepal on Sunday after it was blocked by a landslide. Image by (AP Photo/M.B. Astha)

The pre-dawn landslide in an area north of Beni Bazaar, about 125 miles north west of the capital Kathmandu, dammed up the Kaligandaki River and created a lake 1.2 miles long, causing thousands of villagers to flee, fearing flash floods.

Overnight, the river washed away rocks and other debris, and the river was later flowing at its normal level.

The landslide was not caused by an aftershock to major earthquakes that struck Nepal on April 25 and May 12, which together killed nearly 8,700 people and injuring 16,800 others.

In 2012, dozens of people were killed when an avalanche held back the nearby Seti River, which then burst through the snow blockage and sent water gushing through villages along its banks.

(Press Association)