After the continuous rainfall, the rainfall started to decrease slightly on Friday. However, the water level in the Bagmati River did not decrease significantly.
The squatters in the Balkhu slum watched the rain and observed the water level in the Bagmati River until midnight. By then, the water level was still average.
The unpredicted flood
There was no indication that the water would enter the settlement, so many of them were asleep. “At 3:00 am the water enters the settlement,” says 55-year-old Ram Limbu. “The water level rose so rapidly that it was hard for us to save our lives.”
As it was dark, it was difficult to collect food and clothes for everyone in the settlement. The water level kept escalating. “We were clueless about what to do,” recalls Limbu. Then Limbu and his family went to the first floor, and by then the water had entered the ground floor.
There were 20 sacks of paddy in Limbu’s house, along with freshly harvested corn recently brought from rented land in Kirtipur. All of it was ruined by the water. Limbu has a family of five. “The water started to enter the first floor too. That night we thought that we all would die together,” he says to Onlinekhabar.
Limbu and his family have been living in the settlement for the last two decades. But they had never faced such a disaster earlier.
Damages from disaster
Over 400 families have been left in trouble due to the flood with mudslides. They have been placed in the shutters of Nagarki Jana Bikash Secondary School. In the same shutter, Onlinekhabar talked to Raj Kumar BK, who had an injury in his leg. He got injured while trying to save his neighbour.
“The biggest thing is humanity. On Saturday, I worked for the entire day with security personnel. At that a lead cut my leg,” he says. Four people were swept away by the river from the settlement. Three of them have been rescued. One of them is under treatment in the Bir Hospital. But one woman is missing.
“There is no situation to take out anything from home. The clothes in the ground have been ruined by mudslides,” Bk laments. “Some organisations have provided blankets but that is not enough.” Some organisations have been providing food to us. The Dashain is near, how would we celebrate it? For how long we have to live like this, he says. According to him, the situation became problematic as 20 people were crammed into one shutter.
Ongoing rescue operation
On Sunday when Onlinekhabar reached Balkhu, Ward Chairman Suman Shrestha was working to solve the problem of victims. “Most of them are demanding relief,” says Shrestha. “Some are also asking for help to remove the water and mud from inside their houses.” His phone was continuously ringing.
According to the Shrestha, ward 14 of Kathmandu has been affected extremely. The vegetable market, Kuleshwor Fruit Market, Balkhu Chowk, Karkhusi Marga, and Metro Apartment have been affected by the flood.
“Vegetables and fruits have been swept away from the market. We were rescued by boat. No human casualties have been recorded. But the data of economic loss is yet to come,” says Shrestha.
According to him, the Disaster Management Department of Kathmandu Metropolitan City and the ward have been jointly working to remove water and mudslides from the houses, using an excavator, 25 metropolitan police have been deployed in Ward 14 for rescue.
It is estimated that around 400 houses were affected in the slum area. Due to the large number of people impacted, the rescue operation was delayed.
Overcoming death
On Sunday, an eatery, Newari Thakali and Bhancha Ghar, Balkhu, was full of mud. The owner of the eatery Rajendra Maharjan, was cleaning the restaurant. “The water ruined everything,” he says.
According to him, the flood on Saturday caused damage worth over Rs 400,000. Just two months ago, the eatery was renovated. “The loan that was taken to renovate the eatery has not been paid. The flood frequently causes trouble. Now it is time to move from this place,” says Maharjan.
When Onlinekhabar reached the settlement, everyone was busy cleaning their houses. Deepak Pariyar was cleaning the bed. “Now we should leave this place but there is no other place for us,” says Pariyar. “How long should we live with such a problem?”
I thought the flood would kill us, but God saved us. Everything in the house is ruined, and there is nothing to eat, he laments
