Gift of the Givers rescue team ready for Nepal deployment

The humanitarian organisation, the Gift of the Givers, has an eleven-member rescue team ready to deploy to Nepal following devastating floods that have left 1,400 people missing. The disaster occurred after a glacier collapsed near the Nepal-Tibet border, causing thousands of homes, shopping malls, and businesses to be washed away.

South African Police Service (SAPS) has authorised four officers and their dogs to join the team, urging caution due to the high-risk situation and uncertainty surrounding international assistance from the Nepalese government.

Imtiaz Sooliman, founder of the Gift of the Givers, stated that the only means of access to the disaster site is via helicopters, but if international assistance is provided, all teams will operate out of Kathmandu, which is only 125 kilometres from the disaster area. The Gift of the Givers has been in contact with the Nepalese embassy in South Africa to facilitate visa processing if the call for international aid is made.

Meanwhile, police in Nepal have warned residents to move to higher ground after reports of an upstream dam in Tibet leaking. Chinese rescue workers have been instructed to cease their operations for now. In KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, a Durban family whose daughter is among the reported missing South Africans expressed their devastation and hope for the rescue team's success in saving their loved ones.