In a stunning turn of events, 64-year-old Chandrika Shrestha has been rescued alive from the wreckage of her home in Nuwakot, 11 days after devastating flash floods hit Nepal.

  • 64-year-old Chandrika Shrestha rescued from the 4th floor of her collapsed home.
  • The rescue occurred 11 days after the Bhotekoshi river basin flash floods.
  • Her family had already begun performing death rituals in her absence.
  • Rescue was triggered by an Armed Police Force team hearing faint cries.

In an extraordinary display of survival, Chandrika Shrestha, a 64-year-old resident of Betrawati, Nuwakot, has been pulled alive from the ruins of her home. This rescue comes more than a week and a half after catastrophic flash floods tore through the Bhotekoshi river basin, destroying entire settlements and leaving a trail of devastation across Nepal.

A Family's Grief Turned to Disbelief

The emotional weight of this rescue is profound. Shrestha had gone missing on August 26 along with four relatives. For ten agonizing days, her family had no contact. By the eighth day, consumed by grief and the certainty of her death, her family had actually begun performing her funeral rites, using a kush grass effigy to represent her body. The news of her survival has left her relatives in a state of utter disbelief.

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The Mechanics of a Miracle

The rescue was not a planned operation but a result of sheer vigilance. An Armed Police Force (APF) team, stationed in the area for road works, reported hearing faint cries emanating from beneath the sludge. Upon investigation, rescuers found that the floodwaters had violently shifted the structure approximately 100 meters uphill, burying three and a half storeys of the house. Shrestha was discovered trapped in the mud on the partially exposed fourth floor.

Why This Matters: BozokMedia Analysis

BozokMedia analysis shows that while the scale of the Nepal floods is catastrophic—with a death toll reaching 1,344—individual survival stories like Shrestha's highlight the critical importance of rapid-response units and the potential for survival in localized pockets of debris. The ability of rescuers to detect auditory cues in high-stress environments remains a cornerstone of disaster management.

The survival of an elderly individual under such extreme conditions defies medical expectations and underscores the resilience of the human spirit.

Simultaneous Rescues in Hydropower Tunnels

The rescue operations extended beyond residential areas. In a coordinated effort, the Nepali Army and a South Korean rescue team successfully extracted a Chinese national, Lu Haitao, from deep within the Upper Trishuli-I Hydropower Project. Trapped 225 meters inside a tunnel, he was able to communicate with rescuers via translation software after his phone battery died. This highlights the growing complexity of rescue operations involving industrial infrastructure during natural disasters.

Did You Know?: As of early September 2026, Nepal's flood-related casualties include 85 children, and nearly 4,900 people remain missing.

Frequently Asked Questions

Question 1: How was the woman found after 11 days?
Answer: An Armed Police Force team heard her faint cries while clearing debris in the Betrawati area.

Question 2: What is the current status of the Nepal flood victims?
Answer: The confirmed death toll stands at 1,344, with thousands still missing across various districts.