SA’s Nepalese community rocked by ‘heartbreaking’ flood
Within hours of thundering floods smashing through Nepalese villages, an SA leader was in emergency talks to send aid from Australia.
When Thir Gurung first saw footage online on Wednesday evening of catastrophic flooding and a landslide along the Himalayan border between Nepal and China, he thought it was AI-generated.
“It was so huge, I couldn’t believe flood or some rain can cause that,” Gurung, the SA coordinator of the Non-Resident Nepali Association, told InDaily.
“The Rasuwa district, the whole town, the whole market, all shops were buried, buried under that flood and some of the footage I saw, they were showing, oh, that’s a bank, and that’s the health post, or that’s the mall, everything is under the water.
“This is the rainy season, and we can expect the flood, but not like this.”
Verified videos show the horrifying unfolding disaster, with dozens of people swept away, collapsed homes, floating cars and a metal bridge being washed away.
You might like
As of Thursday morning, Nepali officials said 403 people, including 341 foreigners, were reported missing; 34 from Australia including two boys aged 11 and 14 years on a hiking tour.
Australian officials are aware of several citizens in the impacted region, near where a huge wall of mud and rock collapsed into a river on Wednesday.
Nepali police said late on Wednesday that 157 bodies had been recovered so far.
Gurung said it was “heartbreaking”.
Gurung said the Non-Resident Nepali Association has more than 16,000 members in Australia, and each member was contacted and offered support, including reaching family members affected in Nepal and connecting them with aid workers on the ground if needed.
Stay informed, daily
Within hours of the news emerging, Gurung joined leaders from other states and territories to respond, and he says the Non-Resident Nepali Association have already purchased “food, blankets, clothes, sending them to those districts affected”.
He said the Australian organisation is part of a global network of groups representing Nepalese people that have relocated, with more than 93 member countries now working together to raise $500,000 in aid to donate to the Prime Minister’s Disaster Relief Fund.
Gurung said since posting the GoFundMe at 8am Thursday, there was already about $4100 raised for an $11,000 target. He said the target would be increased throughout the week until they raise $50,000 to contribute to the larger global goal.
Gurung said he had received “at least 20 phone calls this morning” from organisations “in dilemma” but wanting to help.
“When you’re scared, and when you’re overwhelmed with everything…People are like, what to do, who’s going to do something, or how do we connect with the family,” Gurung said.
The disaster – believed to be caused by a landslide of mud and rock collapsing upstream in Tibet and triggering water sweeping into Nepal – comes as Nepalese communities around the world prepare to celebrate Teej.
Teej is a three-day festival celebrated by Nepalese women, usually falling around the arrival of monsoon season, to celebrate love and fidelity with music, fasting and a feast.
There were already events scheduled by the Nepalese women’s groups in each state, including an Adelaide event at Cosgrove Hall in Clovelly Park this Saturday, which will now also include a fundraising element.
“If there’s anything we can do to help, we are always there,” Gurung said.
“We help for the second generation; we were born there but our country is Australia at the moment, and we don’t want to forget that roots and that culture.
“Through all the Nepalese community people, we are trying to reach all the Nepalese community people and their leaders to be in one place, and let’s come together and help our motherland, where we were born.”
Want to see more stories from InDaily SA in your Google search results?
- Click here to set InDaily SA as a preferred source.
- Tick the box next to "InDaily SA". That's it.
