Searching Hundreds of Kilometers for Her Husband: "I Just Want to Find His Body"

"I searched everywhere—hospitals in Kathmandu, the Trishuli military base, the Dhunche army post—hundreds of kilometers in total, but it was no use. I came all this way simply hoping to find even my husband's body."

Speaking in Chitwan yesterday (August 30), after about a six-hour drive south from the Nepali capital of Kathmandu, 43-year-old Sungeeta Karki shared her story, saying, "My husband went missing while working at a Korea South-East Power (hydroelectric power plant) construction site."

Chitwan is located about 180 kilometers away from Rasuwa in the northern Bagmati Province, where landslides and massive floods struck.

The Trishuli River, which originates in the Rasuwa region, flows into the Narayani River running through Chitwan.

Hundreds of bodies have been recovered from the Narayani River since the massive flood occurred.

Hearing this news, Karki said she came this far holding onto the hope of finding at least her husband's remains.

The moment she saw a reporter, she asked first if they were Korean and pleaded for help in finding her husband.

"I was on the phone with my husband until 9:05 a.m. on the day of the flood, and he hung up after saying someone was calling him," Karki said, adding, "I haven't been able to reach him since."

With tears in her eyes, she continued, "I went everywhere I possibly could, but couldn't find his name (on the survivor or casualty lists). I even checked hospitals and police stations all over Chitwan, but found no trace of him."

Karki was met at the Bharatpur Trade Center in Chitwan.

This location is being used as a temporary office to help connect recovered victims with their families.

Inside the trade center building, monitors displayed photos of victims recovered from the river one after another.

When identification cards were found together with victims, the ID photos were also shown on the screen.

About 50 family members kept their eyes fixed on the screens, searching for photos of their missing loved ones in hopes of spotting them.

If families determine that a body belongs to their relative, they can go through verification procedures with the police and receive the remains.

Gita Gurung (32), a resident of Chitwan, also visited the trade center to search for her two younger brothers.

"My father and two younger brothers were working at the power plant in Rasuwa. My father returned alive, but my younger brothers are missing," Gurung said.

"Our relatives are also scattered across various places searching together, but there is no news yet," she added.

The building right next to the trade center was being used as a morgue.

A police official stated, "Currently, 69 recovered victims are enshrined here."

Recovery operations continued along the Narayani River on this day as well, marking the fifth day since the massive floods struck.

Police officers in uniform, soldiers, families searching for missing persons, and local residents gathered in groups along the river.

When a victim is found, police record their characteristics and transfer them to a hospital morgue or temporary mortuary.

Due to the aftermath of the massive flood, the Narayani River's volume had swelled fiercely and its current was extremely fast.

Der Binod Gurakoti (35), a resident of a nearby village, shook his head as he recalled, "Starting at 4 p.m. on the day of the flood, all sorts of things came floating down the Narayani River."

Salam Mia (36) said, "My heart breaks over what I've witnessed these past few days. I hope those who passed away can return to the arms of their families."

Gita Sapkota (50) expressed her sorrow, saying, "I moved to Chitwan when I got married and have lived in this neighborhood for 35 years, but I have truly never seen anything like this."

According to the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority of Nepal, as of the afternoon of this day, the death toll from the massive floods inside Nepal was tallied at a minimum of 734, with missing persons totaling 2,498, including 589 foreign nationals.

The missing foreign nationals are from about 30 countries, and contact has also been lost with 9 South Koreans.

(Photo: Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.