A Chicago family is desperately searching for news after their loved one went missing during devastating floods in Nepal. She was travelling with a large group, and the entire group is missing. Located near the border of Nepal and Tibet, the mountain holds deep religious significance for Hindus, who revere it as the home of Lord Shiva.
Poonam reportedly departed from the US on August 20 to participate in a sacred pilgrimage toward Mount Kailash.
The missing woman, identified as Poonam Thakkar, was on a holy pilgrimage to Mount Kailash near Nepal’s border, according to the Chicago Tribune .
Family members said that when they last spoke to her, she sounded happy and relaxed and also shared footage of her surroundings.
“My other sister… she’s already in Kathmandu. She landed this morning with two of our cousins, and they’re determined to find her. Shortly after that call, she shared footage of her surroundings. As per local reports, the family has shared the video. “She was enjoying every minute of it. Shortly after Poonam posted her updates, high-altitude rock bedrock collapsed in the Himalayas, triggering a massive glacial shift. The impact was powerful enough to release a fast-moving wall of mud, melted ice, and debris into the river valleys below. The surge tore through border towns, wiping out bridges, roads, and entire buildings.
“Meanwhile, 10 Australian pilgrims, accompanied by our guide Pradip, were travelling from Royal Himalaya Hotel in Syabrubesi toward Rasuwagadhi at the time of the incident. Local authorities report over 1,200 fatalities and thousands still unaccounted for across the region.
“We are very determined to find my sister,” Gunjan Thakkar, Poonam’s sister, said as quoted by NBC 5 Chicago . Family members said that when they last spoke to her, she sounded happy and relaxed. “It was all casual, and she was just sharing how excited she was to be starting the pilgrimage,” Gunjan said as per the Chicago Tribune .
She had been following the path of her older sister, Bhumika, who completed the same trip a year earlier.
