Skip to content 
.
His wife Sumitra, 25, is missing along with his 52-year-old mother Tulisa, brother Pardip, 31, and uncle Madhav, 64, after the flood swept away 90% of their village.
Poudel told the BBC that “nothing remains” where his family lived, leaving him with little choice but to return to the country of his birth.
“It’s a very, very difficult time for me and for my family and my country at this moment, but obviously I have to go and see what’s happening there,” he said, adding, “My family needs me.”
‘A very difficult time’
But simply reaching them has become an enormous challenge.
“Nobody knows what happened,” Poudel told the outlet. “Obviously a lot of people are missing and there is no information regarding who is missing, where they are, nobody can contact each other and all the bridges are broken, so you can’t cross the land.
“There’s no power, no electricity, so I can’t contact anyone, so it’s a very difficult time not knowing what’s happening.”
Poudel flew to Nepal on Aug. 28, and by the next day, he was making his way toward what remained of his small village to search for his missing family.
‘Emotionally shattered’
After arriving in Nepal, Poudel said the disaster had “completely devastated his family” and left him “emotionally shattered.”
“It is making it extremely difficult and, in some areas, impossible to travel by road,” Poudel said in his interview with BBC.
“I need to reach areas that are currently inaccessible and where people are still desperately waiting for assistance.”
Yet Poudel refuses to surrender hope.
The last time Poudel spoke with his wife was at 4.15 a.m. (UK time), shortly before the flood swept through the region and Sumitra disappeared along with the rest of his family.
‘I love you so much’
Days later, he recalled the final conversation he had with Sumitra, who stayed with his family in Sole following their June wedding, while he returned to the UK for work.
“When I last spoke to her, she said to me, ‘How are you? I love you so much,’” Poudel told The Sun on Aug. 30.
“I have not had contact with her since then. It’s devastating – I don’t even know how to explain how I’m feeling right now. I’m so worried about her, and all my family. I work so hard for them and they are my whole world.
“I’m very hopeful of finding them but I’m also praying to God.”
Before passing this story along, please share your best wishes for families who are desperately waiting to hear from loved ones in Nepal.