Nepali engineer relives 'miracle' survival from deadly flash flood
An engineer working by the river in Nepal's Rasuwa region has recalled the moment he and his colleagues miraculously escaped a tsunami of mud.
Nepali engineer Rabindra Hamal survived a miraculous escape from a deadly flash flood in the Rasuwa region. Working by the Upper Trishuli river on August 26, Hamal and his colleagues received a dire warning from a colleague upstream about an impending disaster. Within minutes, a large muddy wave crashed through the dam, engulfing the site and forcing Hamal and six others to flee on a vehicle.
Just 700 meters from their base camp, they encountered a second wave behind them, forcing them to abandon the vehicle and run towards higher ground. Two colleagues, a driver and cook, were swept away and could not be saved. The surviving five were rescued four hours later by helicopter, having spent the night covered in mud on a boulder in the jungle.
Geologist Harichandra Budhathoki, working at another hydropower site, narrowly escaped the flood by leaving hours earlier for a medical emergency. Both Hamal and Budhathoki joined search efforts, hoping their expertise could aid in locating trapped workers. Around 300 people have been rescued from hydropower projects in the region so far.
Written by urgent.news from ABC News AU's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
