An army officer calls out a name, prompting a young woman to rise with two identification cards in her grasp. After completing a form, she collects a vial of blood and heads to the rear of the hospital.
In the wake of devastating floods in Nepal, which have claimed numerous lives and overwhelmed morgues, there is an urgent initiative to identify victims using DNA technology. The woman, Prakrit Gurung, 19, hopes her DNA will match that of her deceased mother. The body of her father has already been found, identified by her brother who recognized his photograph displayed outside the medical facility.
At the request of the government, Gurung is among many who are queuing on Tuesday morning to provide samples. An Australian citizen was among the first 14 individuals to participate, having traveled to Nepal in search of his missing brother, who is a Nepali national.
Authorities are reaching out to relatives living abroad to submit their DNA profiles. Several families from Australia have already provided samples.
Rameshwor Adhikari, representing the army, stated, “We are collecting blood samples from siblings and direct relatives. People are traveling from various parts of the valley and even from other regions of the country to contribute.”
He added, “This is a disaster—a natural calamity.”
On the first day of the operation, 37 individuals came forward, with participation increasing over time, prompting the army to erect additional tents for the comfort of those waiting.
Adhikari is urging as many people as possible to come forth, as the confirmed death toll exceeds 1,000, with nearly 4,000 individuals reported missing, including 38 Australians as of Wednesday morning.
This week, relatives of 25 missing Australians issued a plea for greater governmental assistance to help “bring our friends and loved ones back home.”
Families from the severely affected upper Rasuwa district have been advocating for more governmental efforts to deploy rescue personnel and equipment.
It has been a week since the floods struck, and some areas along the Chinese border remain unreachable.
Lhakpa Gha, a 53-year-old woman from the village of Timure, expressed her grief while standing outside a Buddhist monastery on Tuesday afternoon, stating that speaking about her loss brings tears to her eyes. She recounted the names of her relatives swept away by the floods: her father, brother-in-law, son, daughter-in-law, their four-year-old daughter, her daughter, and her sister’s brother—seven family members in total.
Gha and her husband survived only because they were in Kathmandu caring for two of their grandchildren attending school there. “I lost my whole family,” she conveyed through a translator. “We’ve lost everyone.”
The monastery is currently sheltering approximately 200 survivors from the upper region who were higher up the mountain when the flood occurred. Many of them witnessed their loved ones being carried away and their communities destroyed.
Her son and daughter, both doctors, remained in Timure to support their family financially. “We have nothing,” Gha said. “We relied on my son for income.”
A recent UN report indicated that it may take weeks for aid to reach the remote northern regions where roads have been severely damaged and bridges washed away.
If the army is unable to reach these areas, humanitarian organizations face the same challenges. Amy Sagitta Lefevre from Save the Children remarked, “Aid is getting through, but only to a certain extent.”
Speaking from the agency’s warehouse in Kathmandu, she noted that while their teams have successfully reached Rasuwa by road, some supplies are being stored at army barracks due to access limitations.
Save the Children is working to deliver essential supplies, including temporary shelters and mobile toilets. “We are distributing non-food items,” Lefevre stated, “such as blankets, ropes, and tarpaulin sheets, as many people are sleeping exposed to the elements and require protection from rain.”
Overcrowding in shelters is a significant issue, prompting families to be relocated to other areas. “We are also providing buckets for carrying and washing needs,” she added. “Additionally, we offer dignity kits aimed at women, especially pregnant women, which include extra clothing, as many are still in the clothes they wore on the day of the disaster.”
Approximately 2,600 children are expected to require medical treatment for severe malnutrition, and more than 100 may have become separated from their families.
Lefevre noted that establishing a timeline for recovery is challenging. Recognizing that the recovery process may extend beyond a year, Save the Children has established a field office to coordinate efforts.
Concerns are mounting over the potential spread of diseases, water contamination, and the dangers of overcrowded shelters. Additionally, in the chaos of recovery, there is a heightened risk of child trafficking. “This region of Nepal has historically been a hotspot for the trafficking of girls,” she cautioned. “While there have been reports of a decline in recent years, the current disaster raises significant concerns about the potential for trafficking of children and girls.”
