Photocredit: Social Media/ Flash flood strucking Rasuwa district
Journalists Tekraj Thami, Shekhar Dhungana, Suresh Simkhada and Raj Kumar Nepali have reportedly been missing since August 26 following the flash flood in Rasuwa district, Bagmati Province.
Thami is a senior reporter at Nayapatrika national daily, Simkhada is publisher at Shilapatra.com and Dhungana is freelance journalist. Nepali is president at National Dalit Journalists Association.
Photojournalist Dipendra Dhungana of Nayapatrika informed Freedom Forum (FF) that reporter Thami had travelled to Tibet through Kerung, a border town to attend an event. According to Thami’s family, he has been out of contact since August 26, Dhungana said.
Federation of Nepali Journalists Bhaktapur Chapter President Sundar Shilpakar informed FF that reporter Dhungana was on a family trip to Kailash Mansarovar. He has been out of contact since August 26. Kailash Mansarovar is a sacred pilgrimage situated in Tibet region of China, near the Nepal-China border.
Journalist Simkhada was also on a family trip to Kailash Mansarovar and has been out of contact since August 26, according to Binay Khakural, Managing Director at Shilapatra online.
A local radio station Radio Chimteshwor's manager Ram hari Neupane further confirmed that reporter Nepali has been missing from Betrawati market in Nuwakot since the flood.
Meanwhile, the family members of journalists Nirajan Paudel (Ratopati.com) and Bidhya Rajput have reportedly been missing in Nuwakot since August 26. Both Paudel and Rajput have appealed through social media to the concerned authorities to help locate five members of his family.
Similarly, parents of journalist Logshari Kunwar are also missing since the flood. They were also travelling to Kailash Mansarovar.
A massive flash flood that hit Rasuwa on August 26 has caused significant casualties and damage to infrastructure in Rasuwa, Dhading and Nuwakot districts. Due to power outages in the affected areas, local media operation have also been disrupted.
FF is in regular contact with local journalists and journalists reporting from the affected areas.
FF is deeply saddened by the loss of life in the affected regions and has serious concern over the reports of missing journalists and their family members.
We urge the concerned authorities to intensify search and rescue efforts in the affected areas and locate those who are missing.
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Freedom Forum
(This page was last updated on August 30. )
