At least eight people were killed and over two dozen were missing after the Bhote Koshi River flooded, washing away the "Friendship Bridge" that links China and Nepal, officials said on Tuesday.

Rescuers are searching for 19 people missing in severe flooding in Nepal that swept away a key bridge connecting the country with China.

The floods hit early Tuesday and caused extensive damage to the Nepal-China Friendship Bridge and the surrounding infrastructure, including the customs yard where hundreds of vehicles and cargo contai