Nepal Floods: Indian-Origin Singapore Couple Missing Amid Disaster; Daughters Seek Apple, Huawei Help To Trace Parents | VIDEO |
Nepal: An Indian-origin Singaporean couple has gone missing in Nepal amid the devastating flash floods, prompting their two daughters to make an urgent appeal to authorities and technology companies for help in locating their parents. Sisters Karnika and Tanisha said they have been unable to contact their parents, Jubian and Sumeet, for nearly 48 hours after the couple travelled to Nepal for a Kailash Yatra. They were reportedly heading towards the Tibet border when the disaster struck. The family said the Singapore Embassy and High Commission have been providing regular updates, but they are now seeking additional help from government agencies to trace the couple.Daughters Seek Help From Apple, Huawei
The sisters have specifically appealed to technology companies including Apple and Huawei, as their parents were reportedly wearing smartwatches made by the companies when they went missing.
The family hopes that location or device-tracking data could help rescue teams identify the couple’s whereabouts and reach them quickly. “If locations can be available so that rescue teams that are from Singapore and looking for missing people can find our parents as soon as possible,” Karnika and Tanisha said in an emotional appeal. “This is a sincere request. We really, really miss our parents and want them back soon,” they added.The family acknowledged the efforts of the Singapore government and other agencies involved in the rescue operation, but hopes that technology-based tracking could help locate their parents and other stranded travellers. The couple’s disappearance comes as catastrophic flash floods in the China-Nepal border region have caused widespread destruction.
Nepal Floods Leave Hundreds Dead, Over 1,400 MissingAt least 359 people have been killed and more than 1,400 people reported missing following Wednesday’s disaster, according to the latest figures cited in reports. Several of those affected were foreigners who had travelled to the region for trekking, guided tours or pilgrimage to a sacred Hindu site.Officials have cautioned that the number of missing people may vary between agencies due to differences in data collection, reporting timelines and verification, as well as communication and coordination challenges in the affected areas. Rescue teams continue to search for missing people and assist stranded travellers as authorities assess the full scale of the disaster.