Dozens of Israelis trapped in Nepali mountain village due to landslides, floods

Dozens of Israelis have been trapped since Saturday night in the Nepali mountain village of Samagaun, as extreme weather triggered avalanches, floods and landslides across Nepal and northern India, killing at least 70 people, with dozens more missing.

Israel’s Foreign Ministry said Sunday that it was working to extract the stranded Israelis, but Hebrew media reports said that due to prevailing conditions, a rescue mission was currently impossible.

According to the Israeli tourists trapped in the village, there is no electricity in the area, which sits in the Himalayas at an altitude of more than 3,500 meters (some 11,500 feet).

0:00 / 0:00

Promoted: Nefesh B'Nefesh - Aliyah is Now

“Every few hours we hear a huge boom, as if the ground is totally collapsing,” one Israeli tourist told the Kan public broadcaster, adding that no Israelis have been injured thus far.

“Our lives were saved by a miracle,” another told Ynet. “We have no way to go back or move forward because bridges have collapsed and roads are blocked. There is a real danger to our lives, since any additional landslide could cause flooding and destroy the village.”

Get The Times of Israel's Daily Edition by email and never miss our top stories

By signing up, you agree to the terms

“We hope to be evacuated from here before dark,” another trapped tourist said. “I’m afraid a terrible disaster will happen. There are landslides here every few hours, right over our heads. There’s no need to wait for a disaster to happen.”

The Passportcard travel insurance company said that it was working to assist dozens of Israeli tourists currently trapped in Nepal, adding that none are currently believed to be in life-threatening condition.

The Foreign Ministry said that Israel’s embassy in Nepal “is in contact with tour companies and local guides, and is working to locate Israelis who have not yet been reached, as well as to provide assistance, insofar as possible and subject to conditions on the ground, in efforts to move them to safe areas.”

The statement added that weather conditions in recent days have “led to road closures and traffic disruptions in various parts of the country,” and warned Israelis against all trekking or mountaineering as heavy rains are expected to continue into the week, exacerbating the risk of more flash floods and landslides.

Elsewhere in Nepal, 10 local workers were also missing Sunday after an avalanche buried the base camp of the 7,126-metre (23,379-ft) Himlung Himal in the northern Manang district, hiking officials said. All those killed or missing were Nepali nationals setting up tents for foreign climbers who were not present when the avalanche struck.

Saturday’s extreme weather events came just over a month after a devastating, tsunami-like flood struck Nepal due to collapsing glaciers, which killed more than 1,400 people and left over 6,000 missing, including two Israelis.

Despite ongoing search efforts, the Foreign Ministry told The Times of Israel earlier this month that there were no updates as to the whereabouts of Katerina (Katya) Sakovich, 41, and an unnamed 60-year-old man, who both disappeared in the area of the Nepal-Tibet border crossing during the flood.

Nepal, which is still reeling from last month’s disaster, warned Sunday of possible additional flash floods in 49 of the country’s 77 districts, with more than half facing high flood or flash-flood risks as water levels in major rivers and tributaries continued to rise.

Help us report truthfully on social media

As a multimedia journalist, my job is to take the quality, fact-based journalism produced by The Times of Israel newsroom and make it accessible across every platform — from Instagram posts to podcasts to short-form videos.

This is how many, especially young people, consume news these days. But misinformation is rampant on social media. Our team at ToI produces accurate, responsible short-form reporting on Israel and the Jewish world. 

If you believe in the importance of factual social media journalism, please consider joining our reader support group, The Times of Israel Community. Your financial support is essential to sustain responsible multimedia reporting.

— Gabriella Jacobs, multimedia journalist

Support our work Support our work Already a member? Sign in to stop seeing this