Georgia Couple Reflects on Harrowing Nepal Flood Experience
WHO:
CBS News - Mita and Hemant Parikh are a couple from Suwanee, Georgia.
CBS News - They were part of a group of 47 people on a spiritual pilgrimage to Mount Kailash in Tibet.
WHAT:
CBS News - The tour company that organized the trip stated that none of the missing families from their group have been found either alive or deceased.
CBS News - The couple's tour operator flew over the area by helicopter and reported that the hotel where their group was staying "is not there anymore," with "not a single piece of concrete or pillar or anything" remaining.
CBS News - Mita and Hemant Parikh are safely back home, but none of the families they were traveling with have been found.
CBS News - Seven guides from their group are also missing and unaccounted for.
CBS News - The couple had made plans to continue traveling with some of their new friends after the pilgrimage.
CBS News - The couple decided to take a side trip to Lhasa and Everest Base Camp before rejoining their group.
WHERE:
CBS News - The pilgrimage was to Mount Kailash, a remote peak in the Himalayas.
CBS News - The couple was at Everest Base Camp when they learned about the flood.
CBS News - The flood occurred in the river valley where their fellow travelers were staying.
WHEN:
CBS News - The flash flood occurred nearly a month before the couple returned home.
CBS News - Mita and Hemant's pilgrimage had been 15 years in the making.
WHY:
CBS News - Mita described the pilgrimage as a journey chosen by God, stating, "Everybody has a bucket list, but this bucket list, you don't choose it; God chooses for you."
CBS News - Hemant expressed a desire to see Mount Everest, saying, "I cannot climb, but I can go and see from a distance."
HOW:
CBS News - Mita and Hemant Parikh had limited access to news and faced a language barrier while trying to understand the situation after the flood.
CBS News - The couple traveled with a guide and driver for their side trip.
CBS News - They initially thought the flood was not serious based on their guide's comments, stating, "Our guide said that, you know, there was a flood."
(UPDATED September 23, 2026 21:01 UTC)
The tour company that organized the trip has confirmed that none of the missing families from their group have been located, either alive or deceased. A helicopter survey by the couple's tour operator revealed that the hotel where the group was staying has been completely destroyed, with no remnants left behind. Mita and Hemant Parikh, who were part of the group, faced challenges in accessing news and struggled with a language barrier while trying to grasp the gravity of the situation following the flood.
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(UPDATED September 23, 2026 11:58 UTC)
Mita and Hemant Parikh, a couple from Suwanee, Georgia, have returned home safely after a spiritual pilgrimage to Mount Kailash in Tibet, but unfortunately, none of the families they traveled with have been found, including seven missing guides from their group. While at Everest Base Camp, they learned about a flash flood that occurred nearly a month before their return, affecting the river valley where their fellow travelers were staying. Mita described the pilgrimage as a journey chosen by God, while Hemant expressed his desire to see Mount Everest, saying he could not climb but wanted to see it from a distance.