‘No Home, No Money for Treatment’: Mother’s Distress After 10-Year-Old Daughter Miraculously Survives Nepal Floods
Seeking Shelter Amid Flood Devastation: Malakumari Dhakal Nagarkoti cares for her injured 10-year-old daughter at a hospital in Kathmandu after being left homeless by catastrophic flooding on August 26. Although the young girl miraculously survived after getting caught in a fence against the raging floodwaters, the family lost their home and all their property. According to official figures as of September 4, the disastrous deluge has claimed over 1,300 lives, with more than 5,000 people still missing. Photo: Dipendra Dhungana
KATHMANDU, Nepal — Malakumari Dhakal Nagarkoti was at work when floods struck her hometown in Nuwakot district. She had sent her 10-year-old daughter to school from her hostel at about 6 a.m. before leaving for her job. Malakumari said she had no choice but to work because the family depended on her daily wages.
At about 7:45 a.m., her brother-in-law called to warn her that a flash flood was approaching and that her daughter needed to be rescued. A school vehicle was on its way to pick up the girl. Malakumari planned to go with the driver, but she turned back to lock the office door after realizing she had left it open. The delay lasted only a few seconds.
“As soon as the vehicle moved forward, it overturned in front of my eyes,” Malakumari recalled. “I managed to run away after the vehicle overturned, though the floodwaters still reached me.”
Roads and bridges were destroyed, leaving Malakumari with no way of knowing what was happening at her daughter’s school. She also lost her cellphone while trying to escape.
“I knew nothing. I could think only of my daughter and wondered whether she was alive or dead,” she said. “I ran to save my life and reached the area near Bogatitar School. From there, I took a forest trail toward home.”
As she made her way back, one question kept troubling her: Was her daughter still alive?
The girl had been at her hostel when the flooding began. She had eaten breakfast and was preparing to walk uphill to school when word spread that a flood was approaching. According to the girl, a teacher named Sujan told the students that floodwaters were entering the rooms and that they needed to run. The students fled uphill toward the forest to save themselves.
As they ran along a path through the fields, a powerful surge of water burst through a damaged sheet-metal wall and swept through the area. While trying to escape, the girl became trapped as she attempted to climb over a fence. The rushing water nearly carried her away, but the fence caught her, ultimately saving her life.
Local residents saw the girl caught in the fence, rescued her, and brought her to safety. Villagers later placed her in a vehicle and sent her to a hospital in Kathmandu.
Malakumari reached home the next day after traveling along forest trails, but her daughter was not there. Upon learning that villagers had taken the girl to the hospital, she hurried to Kathmandu.
Malakumari reunited with her daughter at the hospital, but the family now faces another crisis. The flood destroyed their home and land, turning the site where their house once stood into a steep landslide zone.
“There is nowhere to live if we go home; the whole area has collapsed,” she said. “The little land we had was washed away. Where will we live? Where will I take my injured child? How will I pay for her treatment? I don’t have a single rupee.”
The girl initially received free first aid assistance from a team led by a deputy inspector general of police, Malakumari said. However, the hospital soon began asking for payment for further treatment, leaving her increasingly distressed.
“The hospital is asking for money, but we barely have enough to eat. Where will we get it?” she said. “We survived, but now we face an even bigger crisis.”
Having lost their home, land, and source of income, the family cannot afford the girl’s medical care. For now, they do not know where they will live or how they will survive.
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