A school principal in Nepal's Trishuli Valley is being hailed a hero after his quick actions saved 1,643 children from a devastating flash flood. Rajendra Dawadi, the 47-year-old principal of Tribhuvan Trishuli Secondary School in Nuwakot, received a critical warning just minutes before torrents of water, mud, and debris engulfed the village.
At 9:20 AM, Dawadi received a call from a friend alerting him that the village was being consumed by the river. Initially, Dawadi believed the school, a concrete three-storey building located about 60 meters above the river, was safe. However, a parent's urgent arrival confirmed the rapid rise of the floodwaters, changing everything.
Swift Evacuation Amidst Chaos
Without hesitation, Dawadi sprang into action. He immediately rang the school bell, signaling an emergency evacuation. Teachers were instructed to clear classrooms, and school bus drivers, except for one who was already crossing a bridge, were told to turn back. The children quickly grasped the severity of the situation, with one student experiencing a panic attack who was swiftly moved uphill on a motorbike.
The remaining students, guided by Dawadi, fled on foot to higher ground, eventually gathering safely under a bodhi tree. Dawadi followed closely, ensuring every child's escape. His decisive leadership helped save all 1,643 students and nearly all teaching staff. Tragically, social history teacher Santos Pariyar, 32, and school janitor Sultan Lama were swept away after returning to their riverside rooms.
Wider Devastation and Geological Context
The flash flood, which tore through mountain river systems, was triggered by a massive glacier collapse from Langtang Lirung peak. This event saw a huge mass of ice and rock plunge approximately 1,200 meters into the steep upper gorge of the Lhende Khola river near the Tibet border. Daniel Shugar, a geomorphologist at the University of Calgary, estimated the collapsed mass covered nearly 50 acres.
The disaster resulted in 734 confirmed deaths in Nepal and 16 in Tibet, with 2,498 people still missing in Nepal and 546 in Tibet's Gyirong County. Buildings, bridges, and power stations were obliterated by the powerful torrents. Dawadi, looking at the muddy ruins of his school, humbly stated, "What else could I do?" when residents hailed him a hero.
This catastrophe has brought back somber memories of past tragedies in the region, including the devastating 7.8 magnitude earthquake in April 2015, which claimed 8,962 lives across South Asia and triggered an avalanche that buried the entire village of Langtang.