A New York teenager and mother are among 90 Americans missing in Nepal as families desperately search for answers

Ninety Americans Unaccounted For After Catastrophic Floods Devastate Nepal’s Himalayan Corridors

Activelifezero.com – Across the globe, families are dialing phone numbers in a desperate scramble for information after a massive glacial collapse and subsequent flood tore through mountain villages along the Nepal-China border on Wednesday. Hundreds of people have been killed, and more than 1,300 remain missing, including over 700 foreign nationals from 31 countries. Among the unaccounted-for travelers are 90 Americans, according to a State Department statement issued Thursday, one day after the disaster struck.

The flood’s origin was a sudden, catastrophic calving event: at approximately 8:37 a.m. local time on Wednesday, a vast section of glacier broke free from the mountainside and plunged into the valley below, international scientists confirmed. The resulting torrent of ice, rock, and meltwater formed a wall of destruction that slammed into settlements lining the river, obliterating homes, roads, and communication infrastructure in its path.

A New York Family’s Race Against Time

In Mumbai, Shekhar Agrawal sat at home flipping through photographs of his sister and her teenage daughter, dialing contact after contact in the hope that one voice might confirm they were alive. His sister, Rekha Shashidharan, 54, and her daughter, Rashi Shashidharan, 14, both residents of New York, had been traveling together as part of a tour group heading north from Kathmandu toward the Chinese border.

“This is the crucial golden hour,” Agrawal said from the Indian financial capital, urging authorities to share information with families without delay. He warned that the next two to three days would be decisive for locating anyone injured or lost.

Agrawal’s last conversation with the pair came around 7:30 a.m. Wednesday. They had planned to reach an immigration checkpoint by noon and cross into Tibet. Just over an hour later, the glacier gave way.

“After that, there was radio silence, nothing, no contact whatsoever,” he said.

He believes the mother and daughter may still have been at their hotel when the flood struck. The affected region has lost electricity and cellular connectivity, and rescue teams face relentless rain, deep mud, and scattered wreckage. It remains unclear how many of the missing survived but simply cannot reach the outside world.

The Pilgrimage Behind the Trip

The Shashidharans were not casual sightseers. Rashi, an eighth grader, had originally intended to undertake the Hindu pilgrimage alone and was, by her uncle’s account, “very excited” about the prospect. Her mother ultimately decided to accompany her so the teenager would not travel solo. The pair had spent several days in Kathmandu acclimating to altitude before joining a tour group pushing north.

Their destination was Mount Kailash in Tibet, a peak revered across multiple faiths. Many of the foreign tourists caught in the disaster were religious pilgrims, particularly members of the South Asian diaspora who had saved for months or years to fund the journey. Agrawal held up a photograph showing the two seated cross-legged on a temple floor — Rashi in a forest-green shirt and jeans, her mother wearing a pink head covering.

“This is Rashi enjoying her temple visit,” he said, holding the image toward the camera.

Other Families in the Same Predicament

The Shashidharans are far from alone in their anguish. Among the missing are a retired American couple who undertook the pilgrimage after their children urged them to “go live life” following decades of work. Another pair from Texas had planned the trip to mark the husband’s 60th birthday, a milestone his children called a “bucket list dream.”

Dozens of missing foreign nationals were pulled to safety on Thursday as rescue crews continued searching through debris. At least three Americans had been confirmed safe by State Department officials by the time of the agency’s statement.

Government Response and Ongoing Search

President Donald Trump described the event as a “terrible” disaster and declared that the United States stands ready to send “any help” Nepal might require. Governments worldwide have dispatched relief supplies, medical teams, and logistical support. Trump acknowledged that dozens of Americans were missing but said he had not yet received the complete roster.

For families like Agrawal’s, the practical reality is a flood of unverified phone numbers circulating through social media, television broadcasts, and informal networks. He said the family is attempting to reach every contact listed, though many numbers provided to those seeking information about loved ones do not connect.

The scale of the disaster — spanning steep gorges near the border and surging downstream along a major river — has wiped out entire villages and severed the primary routes rescuers need to reach isolated communities. With connectivity still down and weather worsening, the coming days will determine whether the missing can be found alive. For now, the search continues, and families across 31 countries wait for a single phone call that might change everything.