Shreya Ahuja, a 30-year-old physician who lives in North Carolina, is searching for her parents, Deepak and Madhu Ahuja, who went missing following flash floods on the border of Nepal and Tibet. The couple, who are U.S. citizens and small business owners from Dallas, were on a pilgrimage trek to Mount Kailash to celebrate Deepak Ahuja’s 60th birthday.
The flooding occurred after nearly 30-foot-high waves moved down a river between Tibet and Nepal. Police in Nepal reported on Friday that more than 500 people have been killed on the Nepal side of the border, and over 1,500 people in total remain missing. Ahuja stated that her parents were last known to be at the Gyirong border crossing, where she said CCTV footage showed the flooding destroying the building their group was scheduled to occupy.
Ahuja is currently in Washington, D.C., and is calling for increased collaboration among the governments of India, Nepal, China, and the United States. She also requested that the satellite internet service Starlink be authorized for use in Nepal to assist with ground communications. According to Ahuja, friends who work with SpaceX told her the company had attempted to deploy dishes in the region but lacked the necessary government approvals.
Ahuja stated that the lack of approved satellite communication infrastructure, such as Starlink, means that families and rescue workers are experiencing delays in obtaining news from the ground. People in these regions currently rely on standard infrastructure, leaving them without the ability to send status updates or coordinates. Ahuja says this lack of communication affects the families waiting for word and the efficiency of local responders attempting to locate survivors.
While SpaceX has reportedly sought to provide service in Nepal, the current lack of regulatory approval serves as a barrier to real-time disaster response. As of Friday, the primary focus remains on active search efforts.