She is somewhere under mud: Nepal survivor mourns missing wife

A 68-year-old man injured in flash floods and landslides in Nepal has been left searching for his wife after she was swept away by a torrent of mud near the Nepal-Tibet border.

Keshav Prasad Baral, speaking to Reuters from a hospital, said he tried to hold on to his wife as a massive surge of mud rushed towards their home. But the force of the current tore her from his grasp, and he has not been able to find her since.

Baral said the water level had been rising steadily before floodwaters entered their house. Moments later, a huge flow of mud came crashing towards the building.

The mud eventually rose to the upper floor of the house. The flow began to subside after about an hour, but Baral remained trapped for several more hours before a helicopter arrived and rescued him.

“My wife is somewhere under the mud. She is no more,” Baral told Reuters.

The disaster struck Rasuwa and several neighbouring districts in Nepal’s central Bagmati province on Wednesday, triggering widespread flooding and landslides and leaving a trail of destruction.

According to Nepal Police data available by around 8:30pm local time, 157 bodies had been recovered from affected areas, while at least 403 people remained missing. Most of those reported missing are believed to be foreign tourists.

Authorities reported the recovery of bodies from several districts, including one in Rasuwa, 11 in Nuwakot, 18 in Dhading, 33 in Chitwan, 19 in Gorkha, seven in Tanahun and 11 in Nawalpur.

Search and rescue operations are continuing for those still missing, while rescue teams and security forces are working to evacuate people stranded in disaster-hit areas.