Head teacher evacuated 900 children minutes before Nepal floods hit school
A headteacher in Nepal successfully evacuated 900 students just minutes before a devastating flood destroyed their school. The teacher acted on multiple warnings from parents and community members, ensuring all students reached safety.
Why it matters
This story highlights the critical importance of community communication and decisive leadership in disaster risk reduction and saving lives during extreme weather events.
Figure caption, Watch: Teacher saved the lives of 900 students after phone call
A headteacher has told how he saved 900 pupils' lives from the Nepal floods - by quickly evacuating them just 10 minutes before the waters hit.
Rajendra Dawadi, who is in charge of Tribhuvan Trishuli Secondary School in Nuwakot, told the BBC he had received four calls at 09:10 local time (03:25 GMT) warning about the disaster, which has now claimed at least 794 lives.
He quickly decided to evacuate, telling the children to run to higher ground and ordering buses full of students to turn around to flee the area.
Dawadi said: "If we didn't make a quick decision, if it was 10 minutes later, we all - including the students and me - wouldn't be able to speak to you today."
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