Saved by a lunch break: Nepal floods destroyed many schools, but students at this school survived

DHADING, Nepal (AP) — In one of the areas worst hit by Wednesday’s catastrophic floods in Nepal, a group of schoolchildren managed to survive when they happened to leave their classroom for their lunch break.

Children attending other classes at the school in Dhading also escaped because teachers told them to quickly evacuate their classrooms shortly before the waters came crashing in.

“The teachers said, ‘There is a flood and you should leave bags and tiffins,’” said Lakshmi Shrestha, the mother of a student attending the school. “That’s how they managed to survive.”

Shrestha was among mothers and children who began to return to their school on Sunday to find the kids' belongings and see what could be salvaged. The majority of the children at the school appeared to have survived the floods, the families said.

Thick brown and gray mud coated the surfaces of school benches, walls and notebooks while the school’s courtyard was filled with sediment. Lines on the walls showed how high the water rapidly rose. A pile of small mud-caked backpacks, some with colorful key chains, were on the benches and floors, waiting to be claimed.

Kopila Mizar, the mother of a student, was unable to find her son’s backpack, but remained positive.

“My son is alive, that is my biggest happiness,” she said.

At least 69 schools in Nepal’s flood-devastated districts have been destroyed or damaged, putting education at risk for nearly 19,000 children, according to the nonprofit Save the Children. Those numbers are likely to rise as rescue teams reach more areas, they said.

The government ordered schools and universities to shut down for three days following torrential rains that triggered severe flash floods and landslides across parts of the country. University exams were also paused.

With communities still receiving constant flood warnings advising them to move to higher, safer areas, it’s unclear when classes will be able to resume.

Nepal’s disaster agency said Sunday the death toll had climbed to 788 with 2,502 missing, while Chinese authorities reported 16 deaths and 546 missing on the Chinese side of the border.

The missing include hundreds of people from over a dozen countries who were in the region to work, visit the mountains or make a pilgrimage to a sacred peak. On Sunday, Chinese state media said 261 foreigners were missing in Tibet, including over a hundred Nepalis and others from around the world.

Associated Press reporter Victoria Milko contributed to this report.

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A student smiles after locating her bag from a pile extracted from the mud brought in by the recent flash floods, at the Shree Bagheswori Madhyamik School in Galchhi, Dhading district of Nepal Sunday, Aug. 30, 2026. (AP Photo/Niranjan Shrestha)

Students' lunchboxes are covered in mud brought in by the recent flash floods, at the Shree Bagheswori Madhyamik School in Galchhi, Dhading district of Nepal Sunday, Aug. 30, 2026. (AP Photo/Niranjan Shrestha)

A mother searches for her child's bag from a pile extracted from the mud brought in by the recent flash floods, at the Shree Bagheswori Madhyamik School in Galchhi, Dhading district of Nepal Sunday, Aug. 30, 2026. (AP Photo/Niranjan Shrestha)

Mud covers the floor of a classroom damaged in the recent flash floods at the Shree Bagheswori Madhyamik School in Galchhi, Dhading district of Nepal Sunday, Aug. 30, 2026. (AP Photo/Niranjan Shrestha)

A student searches for her school bag from a pile extracted from the mud brought in by the recent flash floods, at the Shree Bagheswori Madhyamik School in Galchhi, Dhading district of Nepal Sunday, Aug. 30, 2026. (AP Photo/Niranjan Shrestha)

BODRUM, Turkey (AP) — At least seven people have died after a ferry carrying nearly 270 passengers and crew capsized off the coast of northern Cyprus on Sunday, Turkish media reported.

Some 237 people have been rescued, Northern Cyprus Prime Minister Unal Ustel told Turkish state-run TRT news channel. He said a search was underway for another 24 people.

Ustel said the ferry faced adverse weather conditions and began taking on water just 15 minutes after departure. A call for help was issued shortly after, he said.

The catamaran-style ferry was traveling from the port of Kyrenia, also known as Girne, in the breakaway north of ethnically divided Cyprus, to the Turkish port of Tasucu in Mersin province.

Kyrenia Mayor Murat Senkul said the ship belonged to the Filo Denizcilik ferry company and sank off the coast of Diana beach on Cyprus’ northern coast.

The ferry started taking in water about 7.5 kilometers (4 nautical miles) off the coast, TRT reported.

Video footage from the scene shows people with life-vests floating in the waters around the capsized vessel.

Constantinos Letymbiotis, spokesman for Cyprus’ internationally recognized government, said in a post on X Sunday that the government had expressed its readiness to assist in search and rescue efforts with all available means.

“In these trying times, our thoughts are with those who lost their lives, those who were injured and all those who are living this tragedy,” Letymbiotis said.

“At such times, the protection of human life is paramount.”

A survivor of a catamaran-style ferry which was capsized off the coast of northern Cyprus, arrives at the port of Kyrenia in the Turkish occupied northern part of Cyprus, Sunday, Aug. 30, 2026. (AP Photo) CORRECTION: a man instead of a survivor

People gather outside the port of Kyrenia in the Turkish-occupied northern part of Cyprus, Sunday, Aug. 30, 2026, after a catamaran-style ferry overturned off the island's northern coast. (AP Photo)

A survivor of a catamaran-style ferry which was capsized off the coast of northern Cyprus, arrives at the port of Kyrenia in the Turkish occupied northern part of Cyprus, Sunday, Aug. 30, 2026. (AP Photo)

An ambulance arrives at the port of Kyrenia in the Turkish occupied northern part of Cyprus, Sunday, Aug. 30, 2026, after a catamaran-style ferry overturned off the northern coast of Cyprus. (AP Photo)

Survivors of a catamaran-style ferry which was capsized off the coast of northern Cyprus arrive at the port of Kyrenia in the Turkish occupied northern part of Cyprus, Sunday, Aug. 30, 2026. (AP Photo)

Survivors of a catamaran-style ferry which was capsized off the coast of northern Cyprus arrive at the port of Kyrenia in the Turkish occupied northern part of Cyprus, Sunday, Aug. 30, 2026. (AP Photo)