CHENNAI: Twenty-one members of a Tamil Nadu tourist group who escaped from a devastating flash flood in Nepal’s Rasuwagadhi area reached Chennai on Friday, recounting how they narrowly escaped as muddy water, rocks and debris swept away everything in its path.The survivors arrived on an Air India flight from Delhi and were received at the airport by ministers N Anand and D Sarathkumar, who made arrangements to send them to their respective districts. Eleven of the 21 survivors are from Cuddalore district.It was an emotional reunion at the Chennai airport as relatives waited anxiously to receive their loved ones, breaking into hugs and tears on seeing them return safely.Sathya, the headmistress of a govt school in Kundrathur, said the group initially had no idea that a flash flood was approaching. “We initially thought it was a dust storm and some of us were taking pictures. Within seconds, it looked like a tsunami. Murky water came gushing down with rocks, and we could see people running for their lives,” she said.The group was waiting on a bus when they were alerted to move away from the spot. “We were clueless, and the bus driver too managed to flee from the vehicle. When we got down from the bus, there was slush up to our ankles,” Sathya recalled.The group scrambled to higher ground. One of the men managed to climb a steep mound using a cable hanging from above, while several youngsters followed him.“A woman threw her sari down from the top and others used it to climb up. Those who could not climb tied the sari around their waist and were pulled up to safety,” he said.The survivors later spotted an Army camp, where they were provided shelter and assistance. The following day, they walked for nearly two hours through difficult terrain covered with thorny trees to reach a helipad.Sathya said he managed to contact his sister, who works in the Hindu religious and charitable endowments department, and received immediate assistance.Sivaranjani of Trichy, another survivor, said they had survived only because of luck and divine intervention.“Our vehicle was fortunately stuck at a turn, so the impact of the flood on us was less. The vehicles in front of us and behind us were washed away. We hope those who were travelling in them are safe and that we will meet them again,” she said.She alleged that the driver and a representative of the tour operator fled the spot without alerting the passengers, leaving the tourists to fend for themselves amid the chaos.Another woman survivor said the absence of mobile phone connectivity added to their ordeal as they were unable to contact their families.“We could not tell our relatives what had happened because there was no mobile network. We want the rescue teams to continue searching for our missing friends who were part of our trip,” she said.
