Flood swept away everything I had: Madan Lama

By Kedar Timalsina,Bethanchowk, Oct. 7:“Incessant rains had been pouring since Thursday. On Friday afternoon, amid the downpour, my earthquake-resistant house in Patikharka was damaged, and a landslide destroyed the cowshed,” said Madan Lama, 43, of Bethanchowk Rural Municipality-4.

The rain continued till Saturday. He added that it was raining outside and we were sleeping inside the house after dinner.

“When I fell asleep, I heard some commotion outside. Villagers shouted for us to get out of the house as the flood reached the village. Since I had never seen a flood cause damage in the village in my lifetime, I did not pay much attention to them and continued to sleep for another half an hour,” said Lama.

“It was around 11:30 pm and the neighbours were shouting continuously, telling us to leave the house and head to a safer place. Suddenly, the river started roaring. I got up and looked out from the window, and to my astonishment, one of the houses was being washed away by the flood. When I looked down, I saw the flood had already submerged my furniture factory. Then I knocked on the door of the rooms of my mother and children and sent them away from home.”

While rushing to save his life from the flood of the Salamdu River, a glass piece in the destroyed furniture cut his foot.  He found one sandal and put it on before going outside. However, it snapped when he jumped down in the field. He fixed it and continued to wear it for four days while searching for a room in Banepa and Panauti.

Many people, including his mother and children, were taking refuge on higher ground to save themselves from floods. In the dawn, they saw the flood had left nothing.

“After the flood swept everything away, I had nothing but the clothes I was wearing. When those clothes got wet, I wore them again the next day. I spent six days in rain-soaked and smelly clothes,” he shared.

Due to the flood, the house where he lived, along with the cosmetics shop inside, was completely damaged.

Goods worth about Rs. 100,000 brought for Dashain, mobile recharge cards worth Rs. 30,000, four sewing machines, and 60 pieces of furniture, including drawers and sofas prepared for delivery to customers, were all swept away by the flood, said Lama, adding, “The money and the ply brought for the furniture were also lost.”

“My daily life here was fine. I wanted to go to the Gulf for employment, but I was a little old to do so. After realising I couldn’t pursue that option, I decided to close the furniture store here and go to Europe (Romania) after Dashain,” he said.

He shared that he took a loan of Rs. 700,000 from his friend, falsely claiming that he had already received his visa for Romania and that he would call them once he reached there. “I thought that if I told them the truth, they wouldn’t lend me the money. Unfortunately, the money I borrowed from friends was also swept away by the flood. Due to the flood, I lost not only the money but also my citizenship card and licence. Nothing could be taken out of the house,” he lamented.

He had opened the furniture factory in the village 15 years ago with an investment of Rs. 250,000, which he obtained by selling his mother’s jewellery and a buffalo and from his savings.

Unfortunately, the flood on Saturday night caused him a loss of around Rs. 20 million and turned his life into a nightmare.

“Remembering all these events breaks my heart, making it difficult to cope. That night, the flood in the Salamdu River washed away the earnings from 15 years of my hard work,” he said. 

Lama and his neighbours, along with others who are now homeless due to the flood, are facing a significant problem.

Lama said, “What I want to say to the government is that even if it cannot do much at the moment, we will be very grateful if they could help us find a safe place to set up tents and provide food and clothing for those of us in need.”

“We couldn’t take anything from our house; everything has been washed away, and there’s nothing in my pocket. It will be a blessing just to have something to eat. After the flood, we stayed at a neighbour’s house for a few days, but I have now found a room in Panauti for my mother and children,” he added.