Chinese emergency teams announced that road access to the core of the flood-stricken area in Gyirong County, Tibet, is practically open after a week of difficult work. ^[1] China has fully reopened the G216 national highway leading to the Gyirong border crossing into Nepal a week after sections were washed away by catastrophic flooding. ^[2] China's official death toll climbed to 21 on Wednesday, and 541 remained missing in Tibet. ^[3] Nepal authorities said hopes of finding more survivors were fading, with at least 1,114 people killed and nearly 4,000 remain unaccounted for. ^[4] China maintains its death toll at 16 and missing at 546 in Gyirong, while combined figures with Nepal exceed 1,000 dead and 4,000 missing. ^[5] The flood struck the Gyirong border crossing between Nepal and Tibet on August 26, destroying the crossing and wiping out sections of the national G216 highway. ^[6] The State-run Xinhua agency reported that the rescue corridor to the central area of Gyirong was essentially opened around 10:00 local time on Wednesday, allowing rescuers and supplies to enter. ^[7] The reopening allows heavy machinery to reach the main disaster zone in China's western Tibet Autonomous Region for the first time since the mudslides. ^[8]