Nepal floods: NZ water expert leads aid push as disease risk grows
Former Napier council chief and disaster-response veteran Sandra Rotarangi is on the ground in Nepal, coordinating clean-water and sanitation efforts for communities devastated by the worst flooding in the region's recorded history. With more than 1,350 confirmed dead and over 5,000 people still missing, her team is racing to prevent a secondary crisis: water-borne disease outbreaks among the displaced.
What is the situation in the flood-hit towns of Bidur and Trishuli?
The towns of Bidur and Trishuli, located in Nepal's central valley, have been 'absolutely torn apart,' Rotarangi told the NZ Herald. The road she stands on once continued 65 kilometres up a valley that was home to more than 13,000 people, stretching to the Tibetan border. 'Entire communities have been killed or are missing,' she said.
More than 5,000 people remain unaccounted for, and the death toll surpassed 1,350 last week. The scale of the destruction is 'unprecedented' and 'really hard to comprehend,' Rotarangi said, describing how survivors recounted thinking 'the mountains were coming to engulf them.'
How is the aid team tackling water and sanitation risks?
Rotarangi is volunteering with Taskforce Kiwi, a New Zealand-based disaster-response group, working alongside local NGO Noble Compassionate Volunteers (NCV). The team's primary focus is supporting the thousands displaced by the floods, establishing and maintaining camps for survivors, and coordinating water, sanitation, and hygiene services.
'There are relief centres here for survivors who have no running water, so we are water quality, water quantity,' she explained. With damaged infrastructure limiting the delivery of material aid, the risk of cholera and other water-borne diseases is rising sharply. The team is working to improve conditions before outbreaks take hold.
Who is Sandra Rotarangi and why does her experience matter?
Rotarangi brings decades of crisis-management expertise. She is a former chief fire officer and deputy emergency management commissioner for Victoria, Australia, and previously served as deputy chief fire officer for the state's Country Fire Authority. She also led a Taskforce Kiwi team to Hawaii after the 2024 Lahaina wildfires, and has been a volunteer with the group since its founding in 2022.
Her career with Fire and Emergency New Zealand, combined with her international deployments, gives her a rare perspective on disaster response. 'At any time in New Zealand we could have our own disasters, so the international connections that we make by doing this sort of work teach us new things,' she said.
What does the local response look like amid the devastation?
Despite the catastrophe, Rotarangi has witnessed remarkable community strength. 'It's so humbling, even in the face of a disaster such as this, the manaakitanga that we have been shown is next level,' she said, referring to the Māori concept of hospitality. 'One of the first things that happened when we arrived is people coming out of their houses to give us cups of tea. They are a very strong and calm culture.'
Large numbers of unaccompanied children are among the displaced, compounding the urgency of the sanitation and water efforts. The team is working to coordinate services while navigating severely damaged roads and infrastructure.
Why is this international aid effort relevant for Namibia?
Rotarangi's mission highlights a lesson that resonates beyond Nepal: investing in disaster preparedness and cross-border cooperation saves lives. For Namibia, where climate-related shocks such as drought and flooding are becoming more frequent, the value of building resilient water systems and strong international partnerships is increasingly clear. As Rotarangi put it, 'the international connections that we make by doing this sort of work teach us new things and they help us potentially have a wider network of people to work with when, if we need it in Aotearoa.'
The aid operation in Nepal is a reminder that effective response is not just about immediate relief, but about long-term recovery and shared knowledge. For policymakers and development experts, the takeaway is straightforward: investing in water infrastructure and regional cooperation now can mitigate the worst impacts of future disasters.