Friend's plea for nurse missing in Nepal-Tibet flood

A Kent hospital nurse is missing in Nepal after severe flooding struck a pilgrimage route.

Sarada Simkhada, a senior nurse at Darent Valley Hospital, is among more than 1,500 people reported missing after devastating flash flooding hit near the Nepal-Tibet border.

She was on a pilgrimage to Mount Kailash when she lost contact with relatives. Her brother, Shambhu, said that the family was desperately waiting for news of her safety.

"My dear sister, wherever you are, please stay strong. We are praying for your safety every moment and waiting desperately for you to return home," he wrote on social media.

Rajendra Pudasaini, a childhood friend of Simkhada, described her as "a wise nurse, very humble person and a very, very active community member".

He said that friends and relatives had no information about her whereabouts.

Pudasaini added: "We are hoping she will call us and she comes back."

He added that the disaster had also devastated his own extended family, with his wife's uncle, aunt and their daughter and son-in-law among those killed.

"People witnessed that," he said. "Along with them are the neighbours. It stripped away all the village where they were residing."

He added that his godson's body had been found buried beneath mud after floodwaters swept through his village.

Jim Dickson, MP for Dartford, told the BBC that the community was "extremely worried" about Simkhada's situation.

"I've reached out to the family to let them know we are doing everything we can," he said.

"I've already contacted the Foreign Office and asked for this case to be given the highest priority, so we can do everything possible to locate her and bring her home safely."

Nepalese authorities have reported hundreds of deaths and more than 1,000 people missing following the disaster.

The flooding has also affected British travellers in the region.

On Thursday, a woman from Folkestone said she had been unable to contact her sister, who was near the Nepal-Tibet border when the floods struck.

Tatajana Phillips told the BBC that the last known location of her sister, Julija Jakovicka, was in the border area about an hour before the flooding.

"Then there is no more news," she said.

Phillips said that her sister, a mother of two who lives in Germany, had travelled to Nepal for a yoga and meditation retreat.

Her husband, Ben Phillips, said: "We are terribly worried. We just know where they were and that's really tough."

Meanwhile, Spandan Sahu, 18, from Surrey, is missing along with his father Santosh Sahu, 46, mother Surabhi Manmath Padhy, 44, and sister Syna Kumari Sahu, 13.

Santosh Sahu was the chief executive of UK pharmaceutical technology company Charac, while his son had recently completed his A-levels at the Royal Grammar School in Guildford and was preparing to start university.

The school said that it had been informed that a former student and members of his family were missing in Nepal and said that its thoughts were with all those affected by the tragedy.

Rescue efforts have continued amid difficult conditions, with damaged roads and concerns about further flooding slowing access to some of the worst-hit areas.

Authorities in Nepal said that the death toll had risen to more than 500, while hundreds of foreign pilgrims and tourists remained unaccounted for.

Officials also warned of a potential second wave of flooding after a lake formed by debris near the border began to overflow, prompting renewed alerts for communities downstream.

Members of Kent's Nepalese community have also been sending messages of support to those affected.

Nina Gurung, a representative of the Gurkha-Nepalese community and a Medway councillor, described the situation as "absolutely shocking and devastating".

She told BBC Radio Kent that communications had been cut off in some areas, hampering rescue efforts.

"We also pray for those who are still missing to be found safe, including those who are from the UK," she said.

Flash floods caused rivers to burst their banks, burying homes in mud and creating difficult conditions for rescuers.

It is the worst national disaster to hit Nepal in many years.

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