‘Saw several bodies, animals in river’: Nepal flood survivors narrate ‘earthquake-like’ experience
The Nepal flood disaster has claimed at least 270 lives, while more than 800 people have been reported missing. Several survivors have come forward and shared their first-hand accounts of the situation with the media.“We saw several bodies, animals in the river. The administration has recovered 10-12 bodies downstream today”, a local told news agency PTI.Kalpana Malla from the Nuwakot district, who was saved by her son, recalled her family getting swept away in front of her eyes“They could not escape the flood; there was no chance at all,” she told BBC.Sonam Dorjee, who had left for Kathmandu an hour before the flood, described hearing the flood water tearing through his village.“It sounded like an earthquake,” he said.He further reported his sister and other family members missing, describing the situation as sudden and devastating.Another survivor, Kedar Nath Parajuli, described how the flood water struck him even as he was on the upper floor of a building“We were staying on the upper floor. The flood water rose all the way up, covering the floor with mud”, Kedar told the South China Morning Post.The victims of the disaster are not just humans, but animals too.Goma Pandit, said she had lost her buffaloes and all her other cattle.“My farmland is also swept away. Ten sacks of mustard seeds, tons of corn and rice paddy are all gone. Nothing is left”, she said.
How the disaster unfolded
At about 02.55 GMT on Wednesday, a huge wall of mud and rock collapsed into the Lhende Khola river valley along the Sino-Nepal border, eventually triggering a massive flood.As the water rushed downhill, it engulfed villages, destroyed homes and critical infrastructure, washing away multiple bridges and several kilometres of road.The disaster struck the key pilgrimage route to Kailash Mansarovar, leaving several pilgrims killed, or missing.
