Jumping Into Water for Gas Canisters: Why People Are Waiting in Endless Lines Out of Desperation

[Anchor]

In Nepal, where the shock of a massive flood has yet to fade, an LPG gas crisis is now unfolding. With little city gas infrastructure and a heavy reliance on LPG, Nepal's supply instability has been worsened by Middle East tensions and major roads cut off by floods.

Reporter Choi Go-un covered the scene.

[Reporter]

A long line forms from early in the morning.

This endless stream of people are all Nepali citizens who have come to refill their gas cylinders.

[Modu Sarmang : (How many did you bring?) I brought three family gas cylinders. But they say only one cylinder can be refilled per household.]

People carrying LPG cylinders weighing about 15 kilograms each keep pouring in, and the area around the police officers guarding the main gate is chaotic with people asking whether they can get gas refilled today (the 11th).

This is in front of a gas filling station in Nepal.

You can see people continuously arriving carrying these LPG cylinders.

Because the amount that can be supplied in a day is only about 500 cylinders, people have no choice but to stand in line and wait indefinitely.

Being able to get gas even after standing in line is considered fortunate.

[Maya Tamang : They say it's not possible today. I only received a waiting ticket and have no idea when my turn will come. They just tell me to wait. How are we supposed to cook our meals?]

The gas crisis occurred because the major highways used by large trucks transporting gas were cut off by the recent massive flood.

A rationing system filling only half of each gas cylinder has already been in effect since last March in the aftermath of the US-Iran war, and now compounding bad news has struck.

LPG is the primary fuel in Nepal as there is no city gas, and restaurants with high usage are grim.

[Vinod Maharjan : We usually use one to two cylinders a day, 40 to 50 cylinders a month. We can't get gas in Kathmandu, so we are loading the cylinders and traveling back and forth to where the gas transport trucks are.]

Many people are also resorting to cooking meals by burning wood.


Footage of someone jumping into swollen floodwaters during the massive flood to rescue an LPG gas cylinder drew widespread attention, showing just how desperate the situation is for the people of Nepal.

Although the Nepali government has announced measures to secure the supply of cooking gas cylinders, it is expected to take time for things to return to normal.

South Korea's Korea Disaster Relief Team (KDRT) Unit 2 arrived in Kathmandu today carrying relief supplies such as winter clothing and blankets.

Focusing on the reconstruction and recovery of flood damage, they will operate for an initial period of one week.

Reported by Cho Chang-hyun and Yang Ji-hoon | Video by Jung Sung-hoon
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.