Twelve Tourists Rescued After Storm Causes Trouble in Phewa Lake

Pokhara. Twelve domestic and foreign tourists who got into trouble due to a storm while boating in Phewa Lake at Baidam, Pokhara Metropolitan City–6, have been rescued.

The tourists, who were on surface boats and paddle boats in the middle of the lake, got into difficulty after a sudden storm hit Phewa Lake at around 4:30 pm yesterday. A team deployed from the Armed Police Force Nepal No. 24 Battalion Headquarters, Malepatan, rescued them.

Among those rescued were 23-year-old Sudip Basnet of Damauli, Tanahun; 24-year-old Saroj Simkhada of Kathmandu; 17-year-old Ayush Chaulagain; 21-year-old Sagar Chhetri; 19-year-old Binita Shrestha; and 26-year-old Rusal Chaudhary.

Similarly, 23-year-old Jharana Gurung of Parsyang, Pokhara Metropolitan City–5, Kaski; 12-year-old Chris Shrestha; 16-year-old Sudiksha Paudel; 16-year-old Ankal Dhakal; 15-year-old Pritam Nepali; and a 48-year-old woman visiting from Japan were also rescued.

According to Superintendent of Police Basanta Bahadur Singh of the Armed Police Force Nepal No. 24 Battalion Headquarters, Malepatan, all those rescued are in normal condition. According to him, the tourists had reached a situation where they could not move forward in the middle of the lake due to the storm.

Immediately after the incident, a 10-member team of the Armed Police Force deployed at the “Phewa Rescue Tower” established at Phewa Lake was mobilised for the rescue. Police said the timely rescue helped avert a possible risk.

Phewa Lake is one of Pokhara’s major tourist destinations. The incident has once again shown the need to adopt safety precautions while boating in the lake area due to sudden weather changes.