Boy signals helicopter with T-shirt and is lifted to safety amid Nepal floods
A child stranded on a roof during Nepal's devastating floods waved a T-shirt to attract a Nepal Army helicopter, which rescued him.
Rising floodwaters cut off a home in Nepal, trapping a boy on its rooftop. Using a T-shirt as a makeshift flag, he signaled a passing Nepal Army helicopter, which circled the building. As the aircraft lowered, the child reached for its landing skid, seized a soldier's hand, and was hoisted into the cabin with the officer's help.
Onlookers applauded the dramatic extraction. The rescue unfolded while Nepal continues a massive operation after flash floods and landslides that have claimed hundreds of lives and left thousands missing. About 10,000 troops, along with specialists from China and India, are engaged in tunnel rescue missions at damaged hydropower sites. Authorities report over 90,000 people affected by the disaster.
Why it matters
The rescue highlights the human toll of Nepal's floods and the scale of the ongoing emergency response.
How this story developed
- Aug 27 Flash Floods from Glacial Collapse Leave Hundreds Dead and Thousands Missing on Nepal-Tibet Border
- Aug 27 The United Nations pledged $2 million for relief efforts.
- Aug 27 The US Department of State said 90 Americans were unaccounted for in China and Nepal and it was not aware of any US deaths.
- Aug 28 Authorities warned that the debris‑clogged river and rising water in a blocked lake could cause additional flooding downstream.
- Aug 28 The Nepali army is rescuing people trapped in a tunnel at a hydropower site in Rasuwa after deadly floods.
- Aug 29 Death‑toll estimates rose to at least 579 with about 1,400 people still missing.
- Aug 30 A sudden flash flood in Bright Angel Creek at the Grand Canyon has left more than 20 people unaccounted for and prompted the evacuation of dozens of hikers and campers.
- Aug 30 Authorities have closed Phantom Ranch and the entire North Kaibab Trail pending further assessment.
- Aug 30 National disaster authorities issued new flood warnings as water levels rose in the Bhotekoshi River.
- Aug 31 International rescue teams joined Nepalese forces and fresh flood warnings were issued as river levels rose.
- Aug 31 Updated casualty figures show 734 deaths and 2,498 missing in Nepal, with 16 deaths and 546 missing in Tibet.
In this story
Related stories
11 in this thread