Grieving his brother, Nepal tour operator for missing Singaporeans grateful families don't blame him
KATHMANDU — Outside, the whirl of the helicopter blades. Inside the cabin, there was deafening silence.When Gopal Thapa, a 42-year-old managing director at Leaf Holidays Treks and Expedition, surveyed the devastation in flood-ravaged Rasuwa from above, he went pale.There was mud and water as far as his eyes could see.On Aug 26, water and slush came rushing down the mountains and swept through the Nepal-Tibet border, leaving at least 1,399 dead and more than 5,000 still missing.Until the other day, Gopal's office in the tourist district of Kathmandu's Thamel Marg was buzzing with tourists.But on Sept 16, when AsiaOne visited his Leaf Holidays Treks and Expedition office, the mood was desolate — relatives of staff members were milling around, anxious for information about their loved ones.