Bhotekoshi floods leave older survivors grappling with loss, uncertainty and trauma

The Bhotekoshi floods struck on August 26, forcing people from affected areas to flee. Many older survivors remain displaced because returning home is still impossible or unsafe. The disruption involves blocked roads, missing relatives, limited mobility, and continuing fear of another flood.

Yongjen Tamang escaped Haku Besi after seeing the flood approach. She moved from a holding centre in Kathmandu to one in Nuwakot, hoping to return home. A blocked road stopped the journey. Her granddaughter and her younger brother’s youngest son also disappeared, leaving her unable to sleep and uncertain about the future.

Other older people face similar uncertainty. Authorities still lack a reliable count of older people affected, rescued, or missing. Some remain in holding centres while needing healthcare, psychosocial support, and help tracing relatives. Recovery therefore depends on safer access, verified records, and support beyond emergency shelter.

A disaster holding centre provides temporary shelter after people flee danger or cannot return home. It gives displaced survivors a safer place to stay while authorities and families deal with blocked routes, missing people, medical needs, and uncertain living arrangements.

Yongjen Tamang first sheltered at White Gumba in Kathmandu, then moved to the Kodobari Holding Centre in Pipalatar, Nuwakot. Her family wanted to go home, but a blocked road prevented them from reaching Haku Besi. Her daughter’s mental health condition also makes long-distance travel difficult, increasing the need for a nearby safe place.

Holding centres are not necessarily permanent solutions. Older residents may remain there while homes are inaccessible or while family members are missing. Their needs include regular healthcare, psychological support, safe surroundings, and family tracing. Authorities must also establish reliable information so displaced older people are not overlooked during longer-term recovery.

The available figures show serious losses but do not provide a complete national count. A Rasuwa District Administration Office list recorded 78 missing people aged over 70. At the Devighat Senior Citizen Protection and Study Foundation, six older residents went missing, and only one body had been recovered. The article does not establish how many older people were affected overall.

The main problem is incomplete age information. When missing people were first registered, ages were often unknown. Some families estimated ages, while others gave none. Without age-specific records, authorities cannot reliably identify how many older people were missing, displaced, rescued, or otherwise affected.

Local units are now checking the details before sending them to the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority. Officials say a dependable count will come only after collection and verification. Until then, planning support for older survivors remains difficult.

Older, frail, or disabled people may need more time, physical help, medicines, or adapted transport during a sudden flood. When water rises quickly, these needs can make evacuation harder than it is for people who can walk independently. Missing warnings or incomplete records can add another barrier.

At the Devighat centre, residents who could walk reached safety after learning that the flood was approaching. Evacuating frail residents or people needing assistance proved much harder. Gunamaya Bohora, aged 97, was rescued but still required treatment at Bir Hospital in Kathmandu.

These experiences show why evacuation plans must include individual assistance, safe routes, healthcare, and support for people with disabilities. Food, clothing, and shelter alone are not enough. Authorities also need accurate age information so they can identify vulnerable residents and organise suitable rescue and recovery services.

The floods created psychological, social, and practical problems that continue after immediate shelter is provided. Older survivors are grieving, anxious, and uncertain about their futures. Some have lost contact with children or other relatives. When deaths remain unconfirmed, families cannot complete final rites, prolonging distress.

Yongjen Tamang said fear and anxiety keep her awake, and she dreams of another flood. Two relatives are missing. At holding centres, Youraj Roka found older people who had lost children or other family members. Many missing relatives had supported their families as drivers, helpers, or other workers.

The article shows that recovery requires more than food, clothing, and shelter. Older survivors need safe surroundings, regular healthcare, psychosocial care, family tracing, and practical help with uncertainty. Support must continue while authorities verify records, locate missing people, and help families respond to confirmed or unconfirmed deaths.

Age information matters because older people may face different evacuation, medical, and recovery needs. If official records do not show ages, authorities cannot easily separate older survivors from the wider missing or displaced population. This makes it harder to understand the scale of harm and plan suitable assistance.

Sulakshya Rayamajhi said initial records often lacked ages. Some families supplied estimates, while others supplied no age at all. As a result, officials struggled to identify missing older people in Rasuwa. Local units are now checking the details and sending verified information to the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority.

Incomplete records can delay rescue follow-up, identification, family tracing, and support. They can also hide how many older people were affected or remain missing. A reliable count will be available only after the authorities collect and verify the required information.

Recovery support must address the full effects of disaster. Older people may need regular healthcare for injuries or existing conditions, safe accommodation, and help managing disability or limited mobility. They also need psychosocial care because fear, grief, sleeplessness, and uncertainty can continue long after the flood.

Families need help tracing missing relatives and verifying what happened. At holding centres, many older people had lost children or other family members. Some missing relatives were breadwinners. Because bodies had not been recovered, families could not confirm deaths or perform final rites, adding to their distress.

The Geriatric Society of Nepal found needs extending beyond food, clothing, and shelter. Authorities and aid groups therefore need coordinated records, family tracing, medical care, psychological support, and respectful assistance with final rites when deaths are confirmed. These measures can make recovery safer and less isolating.