“Terrifying Natural Disaster”: Retired Teacher Recounts Narrow Escape from Nepal Flash Floods

BASIRHAT: For Anukul Poddar, a retired schoolteacher from Basirhat Town School, what was meant to be a dream pilgrimage to Kailash-Mansarovar turned into a harrowing brush with death. Now safely back home, Poddar remains haunted by the memory of the catastrophic flash floods that struck the Nepal-China border—and the fate of his former colleague who remains missing.

“I have travelled to many places, but I have never experienced such a terrifying natural disaster,” said Poddar, describing the ordeal.

Poddar’s group was en route to the Kerung region when they received urgent reports of flash flooding near the border. Acting on instinct, their driver made a split-second decision to turn the vehicle around. That maneuver, executed just 40 to 50 meters from the site of the disaster, likely saved their lives.

“We could see a huge mass rushing down the gorge and heard a terrifying roar, but we had no immediate idea of the full extent of the catastrophe unfolding at Kerung,” Poddar recounted. “A few minutes later, we saw local residents and schoolchildren running uphill, screaming and crying. It was only after reaching our hotel in Kathmandu that we realized how narrowly we had escaped.”

A Desperate Search for Answers

While Poddar’s group made it to safety, he is now gripped by anxiety over the whereabouts of his former colleague, Swapan Mondal, and his wife. The couple, who were traveling with a different tour group, had been ahead of Poddar’s party.

Mondal had sent a photograph from the Kerung immigration center at approximately 9:30 am on Wednesday, just an hour before Poddar’s group was scheduled to arrive. Shortly after the disaster struck, all contact with the couple was lost.

“Swapan and I have traveled together many times in the past,” a distressed Poddar told the media. “We feel relieved to be back, but at the same time, we are deeply pained by the news of those who lost their lives. Our only prayer now is that Swapan and his wife, along with all the other missing tourists, return home safely.”

A History of Hazard

For the retired educator, this is not his first encounter with nature’s fury. He recalled a trip to Himachal Pradesh last year, where his group was stranded for five days due to severe landslides. However, he emphasized that the scale of the destruction in Nepal was far beyond anything he had previously witnessed.

As the search for the missing continues, survivors like Poddar serve as a stark reminder of the unpredictable risks associated with high-altitude tourism in the region. His testimony highlights the critical importance of early warning systems and the decisive actions of local drivers that can make the difference between a safe return and a natural disaster.

The incident has left the local community in Basirhat in a state of shock, as families wait anxiously for news of those who have not yet been accounted for.