Family fear for missing hydropower worker after Nepal flood

A Welsh woman from Ceredigion, Jyoti Upadhyay, has lost hope as she waits for news of a family member, Jit Bahadur Chaudhary, who is missing after a massive flash flood in Nepal. Chaudhary, a hydropower station worker not related by blood but considered family by Upadhyay, worked at the Trishuli 3B site in Bagmati Province when the disaster struck.

Since the flood occurred last week, authorities have reported that 933 hydropower workers were missing out of 4,247 unaccounted individuals, with at least 903 confirmed deceased. Upadhyay's family, who have lived together for 25 years, had initially held out hope that Chaudhary might have sought higher ground and returned home, but this optimism has waned.

Rescue efforts have primarily targeted the Trishuli 3A and 3B sites, which consist of tunnels and are proving to be extremely challenging to access due to the mud covering all buildings. Communication is also severely limited, making updates on Chaudhary's location difficult. The disaster was triggered by a glacial collapse, which caused an earthquake registering 5.2 on the US Geological Survey's scale, leading to catastrophic flooding and debris travel.

With no recent updates on Chaudhary's whereabouts and the importance of death rituals in Nepal, Upadhyay emphasizes the urgency of locating her loved one, as it is crucial for completing their spiritual journey.