Bulgarian woman narrowly escapes disaster in Nepal

A Bulgarian woman who had been reported missing by the Nepalese authorities was at the centre of the disaster in Nepal but escaped unharmed. Bulgaria’s embassy in New Delhi said it had no information about any other Bulgarian nationals in distress, Bulgarian public broadcaster BNT reported.

“Get off the bus.” Those were the words Suzana Aleksieva heard seconds before a huge wave swept through the area. She was on one of the buses waiting in a queue at a border checkpoint that was completely destroyed.

“Suddenly, things started flying through the air like fireworks – something grey. It grew stronger, then the colour became darker and darker. Things were just flying through the air, falling from somewhere. The locals opened the windows and told us we had to jump. Then the bus door opened and we all jumped out. We were incredibly lucky because there was a staircase right where we had stopped in the queue, and that saved us. We ran up the stairs,” Aleksieva said.

The entire group of 13 climbed further up the mountain until they found a safe place. They were later evacuated by helicopter.

“We looked down at what was happening. It was a mass of rocks, dust and water. The river burst its banks, and there were houses very close to it. They were simply destroyed. Our bus overturned. On August 26, I’ll celebrate my second birthday,” Aleksieva said.

Aleksieva’s passport went missing at the border checkpoint, and the Nepal Tourism Board subsequently listed a Bulgarian national among those missing.

• Bulgarian woman previously reported missing in Nepal has been found

Editor: Miglena Ivanova