Rajenda Dawadi, principal of the secondary school in Trishuli Baraar, received calls about the approaching flood wave about 15 minutes before it reached the school building. He immediately evacuated the roughly 900 students on foot and by bus. He also managed to redirect school buses carrying more children on their way to school. “I told myself: If there is no flood, we lose a school day. But if there is a flood, we all lose our lives,” Dawadi told the German Press Agency.
Yunisha, a 16-year-old student, told the BBC that they had reached safety only seconds before the flood wave hit. A teacher and the caretaker, who had quickly tried to close the doors, lost their lives. Almost nothing remains of the school building.
In Nepal, authorities began mass burials of hundreds of unidentified victims on Sunday. Ganesh Aryal, district chief of Bharatpur in Chitwan, said the progressive decomposition of the bodies had endangered public health. The decision is controversial, as most victims are Hindus, and cremation is customary. Before burial, DNA samples and photos are being secured so relatives can later identify their loved ones.
After the flood wave on Wednesday, more than 900 bodies have been recovered so far in Nepal and Tibet. Nearly 4,800 people are missing, including several Germans. Recovery efforts are proving difficult due to bad weather and rising water levels. Around 350 people are believed to be trapped in a tunnel at the Upper Trishuli power plant.
Source: www.sueddeutsche.de
