A 16-year-old who survived the flood in Nepal has described moments of panic and a last-second escape after the school where she was was evacuated shortly before the area was hit by the water.
Evacuation shortly before the flood
Yunisha, 16, was among about 900 students who managed to survive after the school principal decided to evacuate in time.
According to her testimony to the BBC, she and her friends escaped just 10 seconds before the flood swept through the area.
Running through mud and a narrow road
The teenager said that, together with other students, she ran along a narrow, muddy road behind the school to get away from the danger.
She described a devastating scene, saying that in a very short time everything was wiped from the ground before her eyes.
The family’s anxiety after news of the flood
Yunisha was interviewed together with her mother, Sabina Shrestha, who spoke about the difficult hours she went through after learning about the flood.
According to her account, she tried several times to call her daughter and her husband, but could not reach either of them.
Relief came only after her return home
When she finally managed to get in touch with her daughter, the mother said she felt some relief, but the anxiety did not fully go away.
The family remained waiting until Yunisha returned home three days later. The 16-year-old’s mother described her return as a moment of great relief and joy.
The 16-year-old’s account highlights how decisive minutes, even seconds, can be when facing such disasters.
In this case, the timely evacuation appears to have prevented an even heavier toll for hundreds of students.