Just a week before the Dashain festival, a devastating flood in the Nakkhu River on Saturday morning washed away everything Renuka had. The flood that hit at 2 am took her house along with 70 ducks, 5 pigs, and 22 local chickens that were ready to be sold during Dashain.
Two decades ago, Renuka Limbu was left with only a small shed for shelter after her husband abandoned her near the Nakkhu River bridge in Lalitpur. She lived in that shed with her two-year-old daughter and son. For 20 years, she raised her two children on the riverbank. She reared chickens, pigs, and ducks to make ends meet and provide for her children’s education.
As the festive season approached, her house began to brighten with the anticipation of Dashain. She had planned to sell her poultry and livestock to cover the festival expenses. However, just a week before Dashain, the Nakkhu River’s fierce flood took everything away. “Since Friday afternoon, the water level began rising,” she recounted, “Although the river would rise every year, it never entered the yard. But this time, it swelled rapidly, and we barely escaped with our lives.”
Continuous rainfall from Thursday night caused the Nakkhu River to overflow on Saturday, sweeping away everything along its banks, including Renuka’s house. “Although it was just a shed, it was a place to call home,” she said. “But now, even that has been taken away during the festival.”
Currently, she is left without food or shelter. The flood took all her belongings, from clothes to food. With no place to go, she managed to spend Saturday night at a neighbour’s house. “I don’t know what to do or where to go,” she lamented.
In a similar story, the flood destroyed everything except the house of 43-year-old Chandrakala Nagarkoti of Bagdol, Lalitpur. Chandrakala worked at a nearby block factory, but on Saturday night, floodwaters entered her house. She managed to escape with her three daughters. “The flood submerged half of the house,” she said, “We barely managed to flee in the middle of the night.”
Continuous rains since Friday evening had raised the river level, but she had never imagined it would reach the settlement. “I’ve lived here for 10 years, but I’ve never seen the river this way,” she shared. “This time, it was unimaginable.”
She was also preparing for Dashain, but the flood washed away everything. “There’s mud all over from the courtyard to inside the house,” she said, “I have no clothes to wear, nowhere to live, and no food left.” Along with herself, she is worried about her three daughters.
Saturday’s flood, which occurred after four decades, inflicted severe losses on the settlements along the Nakkhu River corridor. Many homes were flooded, and several were completely washed away.
On the second day after the incident, when the Onlinekhabar team reached the Nakkhu River settlements, they found devastated communities. Some residents were seen using ladders to access items through windows as mud had piled up in front of their homes. Others were clearing mud and debris, while some stood staring at the wreckage of their houses.
Local residents noted that the flood’s impact was severe due to the confluence of the Nakkhu River with the Bagmati near Chhorbhore Gorge. “On one side, there was the Nakkhu, and on the other, the Bagmati,” said Prabin Devkota, a local resident. “The continuous downpour caused both rivers to swell and merge, flooding the settlement.”
Many have suffered significant losses, with some losing their homes, and others even losing loved ones. The floodwaters have also caused damage to the industries and factories along the Nakkhu River corridor.
The Jay Balkumari Hollow Block and Cement Tile Industry in Bagdol was completely destroyed. Machinery, generators, and raw materials were damaged by the floodwaters. According to Anup Maharjan, the block factory owner, five rooms of the factory structure were destroyed, with an estimated loss of around 7 million rupees.
Sunrise Apartments, Mediciti Hospital, garages, hotels, driving centres, and agricultural farms were also inundated and damaged. The Bhaktapur Metropolitan Office reported that nearly 300 households were submerged. Alongside residential damage, several industries along the riverbanks have suffered either partial or complete destruction.
