Trishuli, Aug 31 (IANS) The aftermath of devastating flash floods in Nepal has left behind a landscape of debris and destruction, with several houses still standing amid the wreckage.

Locals in the affected areas on Monday recounted how they had received warnings about the approaching floods but did not anticipate that the water would rise to such dangerous levels.

Speaking to IANS, residents described the destruction as unimaginable, saying they had lost their homes, shops, businesses and belongings in the disaster.

A resident said, “I have spent my entire 40 years here. Before the flood came, we did receive information. A message was sent to us on our mobile phones from the government, and we also received some messages from China. Our friends who were up there called us as well. But we thought our house was far away from the river and that the water would not reach here. We never imagined that such a huge amount of water would come and wash away the entire market.”

Another local, who owned a grocery shop and several godowns, said the warning came about half an hour before the floodwaters arrived, but he did not take it seriously.

“There were four to five godowns here. It was my grocery shop. We had received the information half an hour earlier, but we did not take it seriously because we thought the water would not rise this high. When the water reached the Trishuli Bridge, we started running. The loss is immense, around Rs 1 crore to Rs 1.5 crore. My wife, three children and I were there,” he said.

Another resident, who ran a potato, onion and food grains business, said he received the warning only minutes before the floodwaters reached the area.

“We came from outside and received the news just five minutes before that everyone was running away, and the flood was coming. All our property is gone. There were six members of our family, and thankfully, we are all safe,” he said.

“We have lost everything. I could not even take out Rs 5. Clothes, jewellery, money, everything is gone. There were 20 to 25 tonnes of goods in the shop. We also had a shop dealing in gunny bags and a three-shutter work area. Everything has been washed away. We could not retrieve even a single item from the room. I had brought medicine for my child from Kathmandu just four days ago, and there is no trace of it either. Everything was submerged,” he added.

Another local said residents received information about the flood 15 to 20 minutes before it struck.

“We got the news about 15 to 20 minutes earlier. There has been a huge loss. We could not even imagine that such a major incident would happen. Now, you can see for yourself what has happened and how much destruction there is,” he said.

Another resident pointed towards the remains of what was once the old Dhunge Trishuli Market and recalled its importance to the surrounding villages.

“What you see over there used to be the old Dhunge Trishuli Market. People from our villages up in the hills used to come down here for shopping. The damage is massive. Right in front, there used to be a hydropower plant, and next to it was a large shopping market where people from all the surrounding villages came to shop. All of it has been wiped out,” he said.

A local also recalled a dramatic rescue in which a person became stranded on the roof of a house as floodwaters surged around it.

“This house became very viral because someone was trapped on its roof. A huge flood came, and it was extremely stressful to watch. Rescuing the person was very difficult because the floodwaters were moving so rapidly. The person remained on the roof for a long time, shouting, ‘Help me, help me.’ It was almost impossible to reach him because of the strong current. Later, a person went near the red area, signalled for help and eventually the trapped person was rescued,” he said.

“Many houses here are now at risk, but this particular house survived because it is very strong,” he added.

Rescue team member Mabaraj Thapa said teams from Likhu Rural Municipality were continuing relief and rescue operations in the affected areas.

“We are from Likhu Rural Municipality, from the Melmilap Department. Our entire team is here carrying out rescue operations. So far, we have retrieved belongings from four houses, and the work is still ongoing. We will continue working here throughout the day today, and tomorrow we will head to Devighat to clear the area,” he said.

“Our entire municipality team of 250 people is present here. The situation regarding human casualties was difficult. Now, the focus has shifted towards recovering property and clearing houses. Words cannot describe what happened. It was incomprehensible. The bodies that were recovered were severely decomposed and disfigured, making identification extremely difficult. It was a tragic and unbelievable scene,” Thapa said.

--IANS

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