Sunday 30 / August / 2026
MUSCAT: “Everyone thought I was lost in the floodwaters.”
Those were the words of 51-year-old Omani mountain adventurer, Fathiya Al Zadjali, who was rescued after spending 72 hours stranded on a mountain top following the devastating floods and landslides in Nepal.
Al Zadjali was among foreign nationals caught in the catastrophic disaster, which has killed at least 750 people, while more than 3,000 remain missing. Rescue operations are continuing in the affected areas amid difficult conditions and further flood warnings.
Speaking to Times of Oman from Kathmandu after her rescue, Al Zadjali described the terrifying moment she watched the disaster unfold below her.
“On the morning of the 21st August, I went trekking to Yala Peak, which is about 5,500 metres above sea level. While I was coming down from Yala Peak on 26th August, I could see this monster thing coming down. At that point, I didn’t know if it was water,” she said.
From the mountain, she watched helplessly as floodwaters swept through the village below.
“I saw my hotel and the village being swept away in the flood. Along the way, houses were coming down. It was bringing down homes,” Al Zadjali said.
She said she could also hear the screams of people being swept away by the raging waters.
“I could hear the screams of people who were being swept away by the floodwaters below. I saw death right in front of my eyes,” she said.
Al Zadjali spent three nights on the mountaintop before Nepalese authorities finally rescued her.
“I was transported back in two helicopters along with my guide, Deepak,” she said.
Recalling the ordeal, she said she had little idea whether she would survive.
“The fact that we survived is nothing short of a miracle,” she added.
The disaster triggered massive flooding and landslides in the Himalayan region, destroying homes, roads, bridges and other infrastructure and leaving thousands of people stranded.
For Al Zadjali, what began as a mountain trekking adventure turned into a fight for survival as she watched the devastation unfold below her and waited three days to be rescued.
Read her full interview in the Times of Oman on Monday's edition
