Faces of missing Brits in monster Nepal floods as loved ones launch their own desperate searches & begin painful wait
ANXIOUS families face an agonising wait for their Brit loved ones as pictures emerge of the missing tourists.
At least 389 deaths have been confirmed so far with more than 900 tourists – including 33 UK nationals – still feared buried in the mud.
Nepali PM Balendra Shah said earlier today that at least 573 had been rescued after more than 13,000 military and police personnel were deployed for the search.
But rescuers digging through the mud face a race against time to find the remaining victims, with a travel chief warning of a “one per cent” chance of finding any more survivors.
Among those missing is “extremely hard working” British nurse Sarada Simkhada, from Dartford, who set off on the Hindu pilgrimage to Mount Kalisash like many of the missing.
Rajendra Pudasaini, an Essex nurse who leads Non-Resident Nepali Association UK, said his relatives were “swept away” in the disaster and said Nepal is facing an “irreplaceable loss”.
Chilling satellite pics show before and after horror Nepal flash floods
Eleven of the Britons — including a girl of 13 — were in a group that crossed into Tibet just as the wall of water hit.
Hindu priest from South London among missing Brits
Nabhi Nandan Das, 64, was leading a team of 11 Brits, including a 13-year-old girl, on a sacred tour to Mount Kailash and Lake Mansarovar, when the group disappeared.
The priest, from Streatham, was identified as one of the missing by a worshipping visiting the Coulsdon temple in Croydon where he works.
Ravi Cauhan, 37, told The Telegraph that “quite a few people” from the temple were on the tour, and said the news of the disaster had caused anxiety in the worshippers’ group chats.
Family of four from Surrey among the missing
A British and Irish family of four, from Cobham, Surrey, are among the 33 missing UK nationals.
Surabhi Padhy, 44 (front right), Santosh Sahu, 46 (fourth left), Spandan Sahu, 18 (fourth right), and Syna Kumari Sahu, 13 (third right), have not been heard from since the devastating flash floods.
They were part of the Alpine Eco Trek tour taking 12 Brit tourists to the holy Hindu sire of Mount Kailash.
Brit nurse says his family were ‘swept away’ in the floods
Rajendra Pudasaini, a nurse who works at Princess Alexandra Hospital in Harlow, Essex, said Nepal has witnessed an “irreplaceable loss”.
He said that many of his family were “swept away” by the devastating flash floods.
Rajendra said: “My wife’s auntie and uncle, and their granddaughter and her husband are missing, and my godson as well.
“They’re gone. The speed the water came, they couldn’t be saved, they were just swept away.
“The town and the villages were swept away, it’s a tragic thing.”
Rajendra has so far raised £8,500 towards a goal of £50,000 in order to provide victims with basic needs such as food and clothes.
‘Shocked’ Brit on missing parents: I’ll do my best to stay strong
A young Brit whose parents have both been missing since the killer flash floods hit Nepal has said he is “shocked” by the lack of information he has received.
Anant Patel told Sky that his parents, Mala and Bipin, had been “really looking forward to” their pilgrimage in the Nepal-Tibet area.
He said he last spoke to them on Tuesday and only learned of the floods via the news.
Anant said: “I think from our perspective, we’re not just shocked that our parents appear to be missing, but also… the ongoing lack of certainty is causing further distress.”
‘Hard-working’ Brit nurse still missing
Sarada Simkhada, from Dartford, was on a Hindu pilgrimage to a sacred mountain when she went missing during the devastating flash floods.
The senior nurse at the Darent Valley Hospital moved to the UK two decades ago and a friend said she was known for being extremely hard-working.
She left for Nepal to embark on the holy trip last Saturday.
Her concerned relatives say that she was last heard from the day before the flood.
Husband flying out to Nepal to find missing Brit wife
Leena Bector, of Slough, west London, disappeared while trekking in the Tibetan Himalayas when the banks of Bhote Koshi River burst.
Her concerned husband, Bhupesh, learnt about the floods while thousands of miles away at their home in Slough.
Bhupesh frantically checked Leena’s iPhone location, which he said hasn’t changed for seven hours.
He told The Times that he was boarding the next flight to Kathmandu earlier today, adding: “I’m still waiting for a call back to check if she’s one of the 33 British people who are on the missing list.”
