Briton confirmed among Nepal quake dead amid rising criticism of FCO
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Version 0 of 1. One UK national has been confirmed dead and the Foreign Office is investigating reports that another may have been killed in Nepal after the 7.8 magnitude earthquake that struck the country last weekend. The victim, a Briton now resident in Hong Kong, was confirmed dead on Wednesday after searches by diplomatic staff in the country. Officials were in touch with the family, the FCO said. News of the first confirmed British death, and fears of another, come as the families and friends of Britons stuck in remote parts of Nepal said the UK government was not doing enough to help their stranded loved ones. Related: Nepal earthquake: fears grow over fate of thousands near epicentre Philip Hammond, the foreign secretary, said: “Sadly I can confirm the death of one British dual national, a resident of Hong Kong. A number of Britons are still missing in Nepal after the earthquake on Saturday, with the official death toll exceeding 5,000. It could end up doubling still, Nepalese authorities fear. The confirmation of the first British death in the country will test the nerves of those still awaiting news of their loved ones. The development came amid mounting criticism of the FCO’s help for those caught up in the crisis. More than a dozen Britons remain trapped in the Langtang valley, a popular trekking spot north of Kathmandu, Nepal’s capital, according to some who have been able to get in touch with their families. But relatives say the FCO has done nothing to help them. Anger has mounted amid claims that helicopters that arrived to evacuate people from other countries had left Britons behind. The Guardian has heard reports that Estonian, French, German, Israeli, Iranian and Japanese nationals have all been evacuated, while British holidaymakers were being told to wait for rescue. In a statement Hammond said: “Foreign Office staff continue to work around the clock tracing British nationals and getting them to safety in the wake of this catastrophe. More than 300 who had no accommodation have been hosted by our Embassy in Kathmandu and we have arranged for around 120 to be repatriated on a flight chartered by the UK Government to deliver relief supplies. “The situation remains extremely challenging due to widespread infrastructure damage caused by the earthquakes, landslides and avalanches. Search and rescue teams, medics and our armed services are on the ground now helping British nationals and others in need. Hundreds of Britons have now been accounted for and our teams are working closely with the Nepalese army and authorities to locate British nationals in remote areas and get them to safety. “We know that this is an agonising time for those who are waiting for news of loved ones. But the scale of the disaster and the limited communications means that it may be some time before we can account for everyone. Many are likely to be in a place of safety but not able to communicate easily.” Fears are growing for those trapped in the area, where much of the patchy infrastructure has been destroyed and there are still dangers from the aftermath of the earthquake. The Nepalese government said on Tuesday that 250 people were missing after a fresh avalanche tore down a mountainside. Relatives and friends who have contacted the Guardian in the past two days all complain that calls to the FCO’s official Nepal hotline are fielded by a call centre. Operators simply log details on a database and are unable to let them know what, if any, action is being taken to help stranded holidaymakers, they say. In one case, the parents of a 23-year-old still missing in the valley called to check on progress in the search for their son, only to find the emergency contacts the FCO had on file were for complete strangers. Matt Carapiet, 23, from Bearsted, Kent was trekking in the Langtang valley when the earthquake hit and has not been heard from since. His parents registered his details with the Nepal hotline on Sunday, but when they rang back on Tuesday in the hope of an update, they were told there were no emergency contact numbers on his file. They called back again on Wednesday and found the wrong number had been attached to the file. Rob Bailey, a family friend, said Carapiet’s parents were too distraught to talk to the press. He said they had been frustrated by their attempts to get information from the UK government, adding: “It’s just amazing that there has been such a vacuum of information. It does seem that other countries have been much more prepared.” Nicky Oakes from Richmond, North Yorkshire, said her son, Sam Oakes, 22, and his girlfriend, Alexandra Holden, 21, were stuck in a village called Syabrubesi along with several other British nationals. She said the FCO hotline had been a “complete waste of time”. Oakes, who has been in telephone contact with her son, said she had given his location to the FCO, but that operators on the hotline had been unable to tell her what they would do with the information. “We’re lulled into this false sense of security that the Foreign Office are protecting British citizens overseas and it’s just a call centre,” she said. She added that her son told her that French nationals at the location were airlifted to safety, while he and other Brits were left stranded. Those claims were repeated by Karen Wilkinson-Bell, from Saltburn-by-the-Sea, North Yorkshire, whose brother Clive Wilkinson, a firefighter, and his wife, are also stuck in Syabrubesi. She said after she told the FCO of her brother’s plight, officials advised her to tell him to log on to the Foreign Office website for updates. “He’s halfway up a mountain with no food, no water, next to a village which has been destroyed by a landslide. He’s not going to be able to get on the internet,” Wilkinson-Bell said. “What seems to be most disturbing is that other foreign nationals are receiving what seems to be very immediate communication and help,” she said. Andrew Tucknott, 39, and Joanna Frusher, 35, both from Brighton, Sussex, are stuck in Dhunche, in the Langtang valley, along with around a dozen other backpackers. Tucknott’s father, Raye, said he had been in “spasmodic” contact with his son, who had lost all his possessions in a landslide. Raye Tucknott said the FCO in London had been “helpful within their limitations”, but he said calls to the British embassy in Nepal had been a “waste of time”. He said his son and Frusher had tried to trek back to Kathmandu, but found roads out of the valley impassable. Now they were running out of supplies. Friends of the couple said their group had been forced to drink rainwater to stay alive. Related: Nepal earthquake: fate of missing Britons unknown “What’s really frustrating me now is I’ve learned from Andrew that helicopters (organised by other countries) are coming in and they are evacuating their own nationals,” he said. “They weren’t removing injured people or ill people, they have had names on a list that they are picking up and taking out.” Susannah Ross, 20, from Bath, is among a group of trekkers left stranded in the Langtang valley in the north of the country and is not expected to be rescued until Thursday at the earliest, her sister said. Nina Ross said they received a satellite message at about 5am on Wednesday saying the group was still awaiting rescue and she called for pressure to be put on authorities to act. Japanese, Israeli and Estonian nationals had already been rescued from the location, Ross said, but the FCO had evaded her questions as to when they would send help for her sister. “We’re really hoping to get through to different embassies to hurry it up because there’s still falling rocks in that area that are killing people,” she told PA. The Guardian yesterday reported how another two British nationals who were stuck in another part of the Langtang valley watched as German and Israeli nationals were airlifted to safety. John Blott, father of one of the pair, said: “Philip Hammond keeps talking about this emergency number, but the number is difficult to use and, having used it, it appears to be no help whatsoever. “There may be something being done but I’ve no idea what.” However, another Briton reported missing in Nepal on Tuesday, David Emperor, 34, from south London, has now been in touch with his family to say he is safe and well. Susan Murfitt, his cousin, told the Guardian: “David has made contact today via Facebook. He is safe and well. He made his way to Pokhara after the earthquake. “He is currently trying to help others in need out in Nepal before heading home.” |