Four Journalists Are Still Missing After Nepal’s Deadly Floods
A composite photo shows the four journalists and media workers missing after floods in Nepal’s Bhote Koshi River area: Tek Bahadur Thami, Shekhar Dhungana, Raj Kumar Nepali and Suresh Simkhada.
KATHMANDU, Nepal — Four Nepali journalists and media workers remain missing after devastating floods swept through the Bhote Koshi River area of Nepal’s Rasuwa district, leaving families waiting for news as authorities face pressure to intensify search and rescue efforts.
The floods, which struck on Aug. 26, caused extensive loss of life and property. More than 1,350 bodies have been recovered, according to the account provided, while thousands of people remain missing or affected.
The Federation of Nepali Journalists said four journalists and media workers have not been located since the disaster. Their families continue to wait for information, even as the likelihood of finding survivors diminishes.
A Journey Toward Kerung, Then Silence
Tek Bahadur Thami, a journalist with the Naya Patrika daily and a former central member of the Federation of Nepali Journalists, has been missing since the floods.
Thami had traveled toward Kerung on Aug. 25 to attend an event. He lost contact with his family the following day, when the Bhote Koshi River flooded.
His wife, Kalika Khadka, who is also a journalist, appealed for information on social media after repeated attempts to contact him failed.
“You used to worry even when I couldn’t reach you for an hour or two,” she wrote in a social media post. “It has already been days since we last heard from you. Didn’t you think we would be worried because we couldn’t reach you? We are still waiting.”
Shivahari Ghimire, a colleague of Thami at Naya Patrika, said no information about Thami’s whereabouts had been received.
“We have not received any news about him,” Ghimire said. “We are praying that he will be found soon. The light of hope will not go out.”
Thami has worked in journalism for nearly 20 years, primarily covering security, defense and development issues.
A Pilgrimage That Ended in Uncertainty
Shekhar Dhungana, a journalist from Bhaktapur, and his wife, Nirmala Dhungana, have also been missing since the flooding.
The couple had left for a pilgrimage to Mount Kailash and were traveling through Rasuwa on Aug. 26. They had reportedly registered at the immigration office in Timure while preparing to enter China when the flood struck.
After the couple could not be located for eight days, their family performed final rites according to Hindu tradition, making symbolic bodies from kusha grass. The practice is followed when relatives are presumed dead but their bodies have not been recovered.
The Bhaktapur chapter of the Federation of Nepali Journalists said the Dhunganas had begun their journey on Aug. 25. Shekhar Dhungana’s family includes his mother and two sons.
A Radio Journalist Vanishes With His Family
Raj Kumar Nepali, chairperson of the Nuwakot chapter of the National Association of Dalit Journalists and an employee of Radio Rajmarg, in Nuwakot, is also missing after the Bhote Koshi flood.
Suresh Simkhada, publisher of the online news outlet Shilapatra, disappeared along with his mother and sister while traveling to Mount Kailash in Tibet.
According to Shilapatra, Simkhada left Kathmandu on Aug. 25 and stayed at Hotel Kailash in Timure, Rasuwa, that night. He was traveling with his mother, Goma Simkhada, and sister, Sharda Simkhada. None of the three has been heard from since the morning of Aug. 26.
The family and Shilapatra were in contact with Simkhada until about 7:30 a.m. that morning. No communication has been established since.
The Families Left Waiting for Answers
The flood has also swept away family members of journalists.
Five members of the family of Nirajan Poudel, a journalist with the online news outlet Ratopati, have been missing since the disaster, according to the Federation of Nepali Journalists.
Poudel’s father, Basudev; mother, Goma; uncle, Himalaya; aunt, Uma; and sister, Himani, were last heard from on the morning of Bhadra 10. They are originally from Bidur Municipality-6 in Nuwakot.
After searches in several locations failed to find any information, relatives began the process of performing final rites. The family made symbolic effigies from kusa grass and carried out funerary rituals in Betrawati, Nuwakot.
A Call for a More Urgent Search
Ram Prasad Dahal, general secretary of the Federation of Nepali Journalists, said the four missing journalists and media workers had not been located.
The federation has urged the government to make the search for missing journalists a priority and to support the restoration of media organizations affected by the floods.
“We have not received any information about the condition of the journalists who went missing after the floods,” Dahal said. “We have written to the government and urged Home Minister Sudan Gurung and Foreign Minister Shishir Khanal to intensify the search and rescue efforts and provide compensation to those affected.”
The federation has also urged the government to initiate diplomatic efforts with China and India to help search for people who may have been swept away or stranded near border areas.
When the Flood Silenced Local News
The floods caused major damage to local media infrastructure, further limiting access to information in affected communities.
According to the journalists’ federation, Nuwakot FM suffered complete damage to its electricity, fiber-optic and backup systems.
Broadcasting by Radio Rasuwa FM, Radio Langtang in Rasuwa, Jalapa Radio in Nuwakot and Radio Bhairavi in Nuwakot was also disrupted or halted after power services failed.
Press Council Nepal further stated that several media outlets, including Radio Trishuli, Gajjap Radio, Radio Chimteshwor sustained damage in the floods and have been unable to resume operations.The damage has left local communities with fewer sources of emergency information as search, rescue and recovery operations continue.