Media Action Nepal calls for urgent search of missing journalists
KATHMANDU | August 28 : Media Action Nepal is deeply alarmed by the devastating flash floods that entered Nepal through the Bhote Koshi River from the Nepal–China border on 26 August 2026. The floods have left some journalists out of contact and disrupted media operations in the affected districts. Media Action Nepal urges the authorities to intensify search and rescue efforts, ensure the safety and protection of journalists, and provide immediate support to affected media outlets to ensure the public’s continued access to reliable information.
Media Action Nepal urges the authorities to intensify search and rescue efforts, ensure the safety and protection of journalists, and provide immediate support to affected media outlets to ensure the public’s continued access to reliable information.
Tekraj Thami, a journalist working at Naya Patrika National Daily, journalist Shekhar Dhungana, and Suresh Simkhada, publisher of Shilapatra online have been out of contact since August 26 following the flash floods in Rasuwa. Kalika Khadka, wife of journalist Thami, who is also a journalist working with National News Agency of Nepal, said in a Facebook post that she last contacted him at around 8:21 a.m. She has appealed to the concerned authorities to rescue him.
The disaster has also affected local media infrastructure and operations. In Nuwakot, the office of Sundardevi Sandesh Weekly swept away, resulting in the loss of equipment and journalistic records. Similarly, Nuwakot FM, a community radio station, also sustained damage to its fibre-optic and other equipment, disrupting its operations. Meanwhile, in Rasuwa district, Radio Langtang was forced to suspend operations due to a lack of power backup. The exact extent of damage to media infrastructure, media houses and media- persons across the affected areas is yet to be assessed and confirmed.
Stating that safety of journalists must come first, Umesh Pokharel, Chairperson of Media Action Nepal said, “The whereabouts of journalists who remain out of contact must be urgently established, and search and rescue efforts should be intensified without delay.” Journalists covering disasters and humanitarian emergencies should not be placed at unnecessary risk, he added.
Media Action Nepal urges authorities to intensify search and rescue efforts to establish the whereabouts and safety of the journalists, and citizens who remain out of contact, prioritize the protection of journalists in affected areas, restore electricity and communication services, and provide immediate assistance to media outlets whose operations have been disrupted.