A North Carolina physician is among thousands of family members frantically searching for loved ones after catastrophic flooding devastated Nepal this week, leaving more than 500 dead and 1,500 missing.
Shreya Ahuja, a 30-year-old doctor, had spoken with her parents just hours before flash floods struck the region. Her parents, Deepak and Madhu Ahuja, were completing a pilgrimage trek to Mount Kailash and traveling toward the border when disaster struck. The couple, who are United States citizens and small business owners in Dallas, had undertaken the journey to celebrate Deepak Ahuja's 60th birthday.
"I tried texting them. I tried calling them. And initially, I wasn't too concerned," Ahuja told NPR. "I feel like everyone thinks, what are the chances that they were in that exact spot?"
The following morning brought alarming messages from relatives about the flooding. What began as mild concern quickly transformed into a nightmare as the scope of the disaster became clear. Waves reaching nearly 30 feet in height had raced down a river between Tibet and Nepal, destroying everything in their path.
According to police in Nepal, the death toll on the Nepal side of the border had exceeded 500 people as of Friday. The total number of missing persons across the affected region stands at more than 1,500.
The Ahujas' last known location was the Gyirong border crossing between China and Nepal. Shreya Ahuja said closed-circuit television footage captured the moment flooding destroyed the building where their group was expected to be staying. Her parents, who were born in India and immigrated to the United States in the 1990s, remain among the missing.
Ahuja has traveled to Washington, D.C., where she is staying with family members, including her grandparents. The emotional toll of the search has been overwhelming.
"It's essentially been one long day. Haven't really slept," she told NPR. "We're just really hoping that we can get to them in time."
The physician has issued urgent appeals for international cooperation and technological assistance. She called on people to contact their local legislators and pressed for enhanced collaboration among India, Nepal, China and the United States in rescue and recovery efforts.
Ahuja also advocated for authorization of Starlink satellite internet service in Nepal. She said friends who work with SpaceX informed her that the company had attempted to deploy communication dishes in the country but had not received government approval.
"These are all tangible things that could really help us get into contact with people on the ground," Ahuja said in the interview.
The disaster has highlighted the vulnerability of pilgrimage routes in the Himalayan region and the challenges of coordinating international rescue efforts across multiple jurisdictions. As search operations continue, families like the Ahujas face an agonizing wait for information about their missing loved ones.
