‘Entire villages and small towns have been swallowed by mud—the images are tragic,’ says Dimitris Giannopoulos, a Greek national living in Nepal, speaking to newsit.gr about the deadly flash floods and massive mudslide that have claimed hundreds of lives and wiped out homes, livelihoods, and entire communities.
A catastrophe across the Himalayas
The disaster struck Nepal’s mountainous Rasuwa district near the Tibetan border, triggering catastrophic flooding and a devastating landslide that buried valleys under thick layers of mud and debris. So far, at least 270 confirmed fatalities have been reported, while more than 1,300 people remain missing across Nepal and Tibet—including hundreds of foreign nationals, many of them tourists.
Villages, bridges, vehicles, power infrastructure, and even large-scale facilities—including dams—were swept away or buried by the torrential waters and fast-moving mud. Rescue teams are working around the clock amid treacherous conditions, digging through massive mounds of sludge and rubble in a race against time.
‘A biblical disaster’
Giannopoulos—who is believed to be the only Greek citizen currently residing in Nepal—describes the scale of destruction as unprecedented. ‘Everything has broken. It’s a biblical disaster. Even the elders here say they’ve never seen anything like this in Nepal,’ he tells newsit.gr.
He emphasizes that the reality on the ground is even grimmer than what appears in media footage. ‘The images were shocking—but what we’re seeing now is tragic. Entire settlements have vanished beneath the mud, with hundreds of thousands of people buried underneath. We wait day by day, hoping to learn how many will be found—and what will be found. The number of missing has already reached into the thousands. It’s chaos.’
As rescue operations continue, authorities warn that the death toll and number of missing persons may rise further. For survivors and families waiting for news, each passing hour deepens the uncertainty—and the grief.
A message to Greece
In the midst of this unfolding humanitarian crisis, Giannopoulos also sends a heartfelt appeal to Greece: a call for solidarity and support for those affected. ‘To everyone in Greece who can help—please do,’ he urges.