As Nepal continues to grapple with the aftermath of catastrophic flooding, a school principal in the Trishuli valley has emerged as a national figure for his quick thinking.
Rajendra Dawadi, 47, the principal of Tribhuvan Trishuli secondary school, is being widely praised for evacuating his entire student body in a matter of minutes before floodwaters destroyed the campus.
The disaster, which struck on Wednesday, August 26, buried the town under nine meters of mud. Dawadi recounted that he was teaching when he received a call around 9:10 a.m. from a friend whose village upstream had been swept away.
The warning prompted an immediate response.
Initially, Dawadi believed the school, a three-story concrete building situated about 60 meters above the river, might be safe. However, he decided not to take any chances.
He alerted a colleague, Pradeep Pandit, and together they rang the school bell to gather the students. The evacuation included those already in class, those arriving, and instructions for school buses to turn around and head toward the mountains.
The urgency became clear to the children as they fled on foot. One girl, who suffered a panic attack, was taken to higher ground on a motorcycle.
Dawadi was the last to leave the premises. From the initial warning call to the completion of the evacuation, only fifteen minutes had passed.
The students took shelter under a Bodhi tree on a hillside. Five minutes after they reached safety, they watched the floodwaters carry away the school buildings.
In total, 1,643 children and all teaching staff were saved, with two tragic exceptions. Santos Pariyar, a 32-year-old history-geography teacher, was swept away after returning to his rented room near the river to prepare breakfast.
The school caretaker, Sultan Lama, also died after going back to close the doors.
While villagers and many across Nepal have hailed Dawadi as a hero, he has downplayed the label.
Speaking on the private channel Kantipur TV (KTV) on Sunday, he said, “What else could I have done?” as he inspected the muddy ruins of his school.
Learn more about Le Temps
The rescue comes as international teams from China, India, and South Korea entered the tunnel of the Trishuli-3A hydroelectric dam on the same day, hoping to find survivors among the 350 workers and engineers trapped inside.
The search continues as the region faces further risks from monsoon rains and the potential formation of an artificial lake on the Chinese side.
Source: <a href=
Source: Crue mortelle au Népal : voici l’homme qui a sauvé 1 643 enfants