Nepal floods leave Delhi's Nepali workers worried as calls home go unanswered

As devastating flash floods swept through parts of Nepal, Nepali workers and residents in Delhi spent Wednesday, August 26, anxiously trying to contact their families and friends back home, with repeated calls and messages offering little clarity amid reports of deaths and missing people.

The floods, triggered by torrential rains and a surge in the Bhote Koshi River near the Tibet border, swept through parts of central Nepal, damaging bridges, villages and hydropower projects and leaving hundreds of people missing.

For Nepali workers in Delhi, the disaster quickly turned into a desperate search for information about loved ones in affected areas.

"It is a very saddening and distressing incident," said Prashant Singh, chief executive officer of Yeti - The Himalayan Kitchen.

He said the immediate concern at the restaurant was for its Nepali employees, many of whom have parents, siblings, friends and relatives back home, including in areas affected by the floods.

"As soon as we learnt about the situation, our staff immediately started reaching out to their parents, friends and relatives to check on their well-being and make sure they were safe," Singh said.

He said there was a genuine sense of worry among the workers, for whom Nepal was not just their home country but the place where their families and loved ones remained.

"We wanted to make sure that our people knew we were standing with them and that we were doing everything possible to check on their families at this difficult time," he said.

Manish, who moved to Delhi from Nepal two years ago for work and is employed at a bar in a Tibetan restaurant in Hauz Khas, said his family in Pokhara had been trying to contact people they knew in the affected regions.

"People back home have been calling each other since morning because nobody really knows what is happening there," he said.

While his immediate family is in Pokhara, Manish said he has relatives and friends in the Nuwakot region and was trying to find out whether they were safe.

Some calls were not going through and information was scarce initially, he said.

"I was also trying to call from Delhi, but you don't know who to call or what number will work. I saw videos coming on social media and I am worried after seeing the extent of damage there," Manish said.

"I have been away for two years, but most of my family is still there. Everyone was just trying to find out who was safe," he added.

A waiter from northern Nepal, who did not wish to be named, said he too had been repeatedly trying to contact family and friends.

"I have been trying to get in touch with my family and friends back home, and I am very worried about them," he said.

With families and acquaintances scattered across Nepal, he said many workers in Delhi were constantly checking their phones for updates.

"It is very difficult to concentrate on work when you are sitting here and worrying about whether your loved ones are safe. I just hope they are all okay and that we hear from them soon," he said.

The scale of the disaster added to their anxiety. At least 72 people were killed and nearly 500, including 133 Indians, were reported missing after a torrential flash flood originating in Tibet swept through central Nepal, devastating towns and villages, washing away bridges and damaging at least a dozen hydropower projects.

The flood surged through the Bhote Koshi River around 9 am local time, affecting Rasuwa and Dhading districts along the Tibet border, officials said. Rasuwa is located about 125 km northeast of Kathmandu.

Floodwaters subsequently spread to Nuwakot and Chitwan districts, damaging at least four permanent bridges and several temporary ones.

Foreign Minister Shisir Khanal informed the House of Representatives that 80 security personnel, including 44 Nepal Army personnel, were also missing across various locations.

For the Nepali community in Delhi, however, the numbers and reports coming from Nepal remained secondary to one immediate concern hearing from their own families.