Nepal school principal saved 900 children with last-minute decision before flash floods

Just 10 minutes before a nearby glacier broke, sending fast-moving waves of water, ice, and mud through his school, one Nepalese headteacher made a spur-of-the-moment decision that would save the lives of 900 students.

Rajendra Dawadi, the headmaster of Tribhuvan Trishuli Secondary School in Nuwakot, received a series of hurried telephone calls just after 9:00 am local-time the day the nation was hit by violent flash flooding.

During four calls, he was warned about the possibility of a glacier near the autonomous Chinese province of Tibet breaking its banks, after which he made the decision to evacuate the school. A number of parents also raised the same concerns.

Unwilling to take any chances, Dawadi instructed a number of his students to find safety on higher ground surrounding the province, while sending as many as he could away from the region on buses.

The headmaster received several warnings the morning of the flood (Prabin RANABHAT / AFP via Getty Images)

"A parent came and told me that 'a big flood was coming; I am here to take my daughter, I will take her'," he told the BBC this week. "Parents don't rush without a strong reason, so it was confirmed that I shouldn't waste a second to evacuate the children.

"I decided I shouldn't delay any more. Even if the flood was not coming, it was just a matter of a single day's classes."

Moments later, the warnings materialised, and violent tides came crashing through Nuwakot.

Across the country, over 700 people were killed, while 2,400 residents remain missing.

Thankfully, Dawadi and his students escaped from the area unscathed.

A hostel building close to the secondary school was immediately engulfed by the floodwaters.

"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," he added.

Dawadi sent as many students as he could away on buses (MATHEMA / AFP via Getty Images)

"I feel proud that we saved so many lives."

Dawadi recalled that, after he gave them his initial instructions to flee, several students hesitated, unsure how real the threat was.

Amongst them was 16-year-old Yunisha Amatya, who only escaped in the nick of time.

"I, along with my friends, survived by just 10 seconds only," she told the BBC. "Just before the flood came, we were in class studying.

"Teachers had gathered in one place and initially had no idea what had happened. After five minutes, teachers came and informed us about the flood and asked us to go home."

Some students, Amatya added, waited inside the facility for friends, while Dawadi led hundreds uphill to safety.

"I could not walk fast, and my friends helped me to climb uphill," the schoolgirl continued. "We tried our best to be in the safer zones then.

Amatya admitted she was initially unsure about her headteacher's warning (BBC)

"We escaped through a narrow ladder from the back side of the school. Within no time, the bazaar was swept away in front of my eyes."

"If there was no grip in my shoes, I would have fallen, and students and other people were jostling each other to reach the safer area while escaping. The people who choose to escape from another route were apparently swept away."

Eventually, the group were air lifted to safety.

Now, Dawadi is urging Nepalese leaders to implement improved flood warning systems, including sirens and evacuation alerts, claiming they'd have saved the lives of hundreds more locals.

"Had I decided to close the school after the period, nothing might be left; only the bell would be ringing at 9:30," he noted.