By Jack Delaney | jdelaney@queensledger.com
RIDGEWOOD — It’s been a grim week for Rajesh Bhatta, the president of the New York Nepalese Society.
On August 26, a 2,000-foot-wide chunk of glacier collapsed north of Kathmandu, Nepal’s capital, triggering a landslide and flash flooding that plunged 7,000 feet, demolishing towns in its wake. Over 1,000 people have since been declared dead as the relief effort enters its second week.
Here in New York City — and especially in Queens, which is home to much of the roughly 23,000 Nepalis and 15,000 Tibetans who live in the city — the tragedy has left thousands of residents in limbo, waiting for more information to emerge about missing family members or contending with enormous financial losses.
Bhatta’s friend miraculously survived the floods by climbing up into the mountains, he said, but he lost “everything,” including his “dream house” that he had recently bought in Nepal after working for decades in NYC to save up enough money. Bhatta also personally knows at least 10 families from the city who haven’t yet been able to locate their relatives.
“It’s been devastating,” he said. “Everybody’s been going through a lot of mental stress.”
Bhatta and his team of volunteers have fielded hundreds of calls in the past week, searching for ways to provide support despite the distance. Along with a fundraising drive, the Nepalese Society organized a candlelight vigil with sister organizations last Thursday on Sutphin Boulevard in Ridgewood, where dozens of neighbors gathered with elected officials, chanting prayers under rainy skies.
A parallel vigil took place during the same night in Jackson Heights, not far from Himalayan Yak, the first Nepali restaurant to open in NYC. At the event, a collaboration between 32 Nepali community groups, mourners clustered around candles that spelled out “Nepal” as they comforted one another.
The Nepali community last faced a similar situation in 2015, when a 7.8-magnitude earthquake killed approximately 9,000 people and injured over 22,000 more. But Bhatta noted that the flooding has made many roads impassable this time, complicating aid work.
“To our proud Nepalese and Tibetan communities in Elmhurst, Jackson Heights and all across Queens, we mourn with you,” said Queens Borough President Donovan Richards, echoing a chorus of messages from other officials.
For any New Yorkers looking to support their Nepali neighbors, visit setu.ndrrma.gov.np for more information on how and where to donate.
