Nepal flood death toll rises to 904 as rescuers search tunnels for hundreds

85 Americans unaccounted for among 592 missing foreign nationals

Rescuers worked through the night to reach 933 workers the disaster management agency said are missing and believed trapped in hydroelectric tunnels, as more than 20,500 security personnel mobilized across Nepal’s mountainous border region.

The authority issued the updated figures at 9 a.m. local time on Monday, raising the death toll by more than 100 and the missing count by more than 1,200 from a day earlier. Among the missing were 592 foreign nationals, the agency said.

On Sunday, State Department spokesperson Tommy Pigott told ABC News’ “This Week” that 85 Americans remain unaccounted for. Unidentified bodies were being kept at 21 hospitals in the area, according to the disaster management agency.

The agency said 267 people were injured, though 156 have been discharged from the hospital. More than 10,400 people, including 252 non-citizens, have been rescued, the authority reported.

The flooding occurred Wednesday morning and is believed to have been triggered by a massive glacial collapse. The U.S. Geological Survey said the deluge registered as a 5.2-magnitude earthquake.

Preliminary information cited by the International Federation of Red Cross indicates at least 18,000 households have been affected. UNICEF said at least 17,000 children have been impacted.

Among damaged facilities were 18 schools completely destroyed and another 20 damaged, UNICEF said.

As of Monday, rescuers were working to reach 933 workers the disaster management agency said are missing and believed trapped in hydroelectric tunnels. Nepal’s Ministry of Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation said in a Sunday statement that efforts are being accelerated at one of the tunnels.

“Water accumulated inside the tunnel is currently being removed, while preparations have reached the final stage for sending rescuers inside equipped with oxygen, medical supplies, communications equipment and cameras,” the ministry said.

“The team plans to travel approximately 180 meters from the portal to a possible working space, where it will assess the actual conditions, determine the location of those trapped and evaluate their safety,” the ministry added.