The death toll from the devastating flash floods in Nepal rose to 1,344 on Saturday as more bodies were recovered from the affected districts, police said.

Rescue teams continued to search for around 4,900 people who remain missing.

Of the total bodies recovered so far, 758 were adults, 85 were children and 501 were recovered with body parts missing, officials said, attributing the condition of the bodies to prolonged exposure to water and the weight of debris.

The flash floods, triggered by an ice-rock avalanche near the Nepal-Tibet border on August 26, devastated towns and villages in northern and central Nepal. The Bhotekoshi River, which flows south from the Himalayan border region, carried the floodwaters downstream, sweeping away homes, vehicles, roads and bridges and damaging hydropower projects.

The disaster also killed at least 21 people on the Chinese side, while more than 500 people remain missing in Tibet, according to Chinese media reports.