What we know so far about the New Zealanders missing after Nepal flood

What we know so far about the New Zealanders missing after Nepal flood

Five New Zealanders remain missing following the deadly flash flood at the Nepal-China border.

A total of 289 foreign nationals have been rescued, according to an update from the Nepal Tourism Board early Monday morning. No New Zealanders have been included in that number to date.

In a statement on Monday, a spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade said there had been no change to the status of the five missing Kiwis.

"While various information is circulating online of those rescued and recovered, there is still no new verified information on the missing New Zealanders. This is likely to take more time to emerge. Unfortunately reports of the situation on the ground remain bleak. "

The spokesperson said members of New Zealand Police have now arrived in Kathmandu as part of MFAT's consular team and will work with authorites and partners top gather information and support families.

They confirmed two people reported as missing in China on the Tibet-Nepal border are part of the five missing.

The missing New Zealanders are:

Here's what we know about them, as the search for those missing following the disaster continues.

Dejan Kuzmic was part of a group of 77 Isha Foundation Walkers who had just completed the Mount Kailash, Lake Mansorova sacred walk.

Kuzmic came to New Zealand from Bosnia and Herzegovina as a refugee when he was 10 years old.

Nepal's Tourist Police confirmed Kuzmic's name to RNZ on Thursday morning.

Kuzmic's flatmate Alicia Gimelfarb told RNZ Kuzmic had just turned 44.

"He was very selfless, very generous, and very like affectionate. He was always cheerful and, you know, wanted to make everyone smile and laugh."

She said he was always helpful and went the extra mile for people.

The pair met through school and had been flatting together for the past five years. Gimelfarb said he had been "dreaming" and planning to go to Mount Kailash and Lake Manasarova to do the sacred pilgrimage walk for several years.

Kuzmic has not made contact since the floods and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade had opened a consular case for him.

Auckland woman Shweta Mhatre is believed to be missing, following the devastating flash floods.

Close friends of hers told RNZ that she was in Nepal on a pilgrimage.

None of them had heard from her since Wednesday's catastrophic flash flooding on the Nepal-China border. A former partner of hers, as well as her neighbours, had not seen or heard from her.

RNZ understands Mhatre was part of the Isha Foundation's Sacred Walks pilgrimage.

The Isha Foundation told RNZ on Friday that Mhatre's emergency contacts had been notified about her situation.

Sadhguru, founder of the Isha Foundation, posted a video on social media saying two New Zealanders were missing from his pilgrimage group.

Mihir Patel and Kinnari Patel, who own the Best Value Urlich Ave Dairy in Hamilton, were visiting Nepal for Kinnari's birthday.

Their eldest son, Drishya Patel, told RNZ he was holding onto hope his parents had left the area before disaster struck.

"They're just on a trip to go visit some of the mountains in Nepal. It's like a pilgrimage of sorts," he said.

"They were having a good time."

Mihir Patel and Kinnari Patel, who own the Best Value Urlich Ave Dairy in Hamilton, are among the New Zealanders missing.

His mother had messaged him on WhatsApp about 5.30am local time to say they were leaving. The flash flood began unfolding around 8.40am local time.

The couple have not been heard from since.

"As long as like they actually did leave when my mum sent me that message, I'm hopeful," he said.

Suhasini Reddy was believed to be in the Dhunche area, heading towards the Nepal-China border, on Wednesday morning local time.

Her brother, Rajeev Reddy, told RNZ his sister was hiking with a group of friends from Australia. The mother of two had been living there for the past four years.

Her brother last spoke to her the night before the floods, while she was in Kathmandu.

"She was all good, excited," he said.

"She had this trip planned for a while."

Reddy said his sister was supposed to be meeting Chinese immigration about 11am local time. They had not heard anything from her since the flash flood.

Dinesh Khadka, former honorary consul of Nepal to New Zealand, said the immigration checkpoint had been completely swept away in the flooding, and nobody had been able to contact anyone who was in the area.