A Nepalese man living in Aberdeen has lost his brother, uncle and cousin in the devastating flash floods that struck his homeland. Barun Lamichhane, 26, said he "can't even think" after learning of the deaths, while his mother, father and grandmother managed to escape to safety.
Family escaped by crawling into hillside
Barun's parents and gran survived the disaster after getting away by "crawling like a baby" into the hillside, he told BBC Scotland. They have since told him that "everything is gone" after their home was impacted by the floods.
The family is originally from Betrawati in the Nuwakot District, near Nepal's capital Kathmandu. Barun, who said he "can't express" the pain he is feeling, recently graduated in international events management from the University of the West of Scotland.
Floods triggered by glacier dislodged from Himalayas
The floods hit border regions in Nepal and Tibet on Wednesday, August 26, after a glacier was dislodged from a mountainside in the Himalayas, triggering the deluge. More than 1,000 people have been reported missing and more than 350 people are known to have died.
Barun said: "I was sleeping and my sister woke me up and said 'in our village there is nothing - like everything is gone'. At that time, I'm just a blank, I can't even think. They are saying that our home, everything, is gone. Nothing is left."
UK offers £5m in relief
It was earlier suggested the floods may have been caused by an earthquake, but the US Geological Survey has since clarified that additional analysis indicates the "seismic energy was instead generated by a landslide".
With more than 1,000 people missing, Barun fears he may have lost many more friends and neighbours. His mum, Tulasha Lamichhane, dad, Netra Prasad Lamichhane, and gran, Krishna Kumari Lamichhane, all managed to escape despite being in different locations when the flood hit. He said: "Luckily they are alive." The trio are now sheltering in a school being used as a refuge for survivors.
Among the missing are 33 people from the UK, including a 13-year-old girl and 14-year-old boy. Prime Minister Andy Burnham said the UK has offered £5m to the Nepalese government to help with relief efforts, describing it as a "very distressing and devastating situation". The UK Foreign Office has said it is working closely with Nepalese authorities "following concerning reports of British nationals who are missing".
