‘Survivor’ skills save US tourist’s life in wake of quake devastation
A TOURIST stranded for days in quake-hit Nepal, says he watched boulders the size of minivans smash buildings in a popular tourist area during a massive earthquake that hit Nepal 10 days ago.
American Corey Ascolani, who witnessed devastation in the remote tourist area of Langtang during a massive avalanche brought on by the quake, lived to tell the tale using skills learnt from reality TV show, Survivor.
Ascolani described how he spent five terrifying days in Langtang, before being rescued.
“It was very hard to sleep, I remember feeling every vibration in the ground . . . my nerves were shot, I slept maybe one hour that first night,” Ascolani said in Kathmandu, after he was airlifted to safety.
The 7.8-magnitude quake hit at the height of trekking season, wiping out Langtang’s main village. With information still emerging from the remote area, it remains unclear how many people were killed, but local authorities have found 60 bodies, including those of 13 foreigners.
They estimated there could be more than 150 Nepalis and 100 tourists buried in Langtang village, which is home to about 400 people – mostly subsistence farmers or guesthouse workers.
In Bamboo village, at the start of the trail, Ascolani had stopped for a coffee at an outdoor teahouse when the ground began to shake, sending huge rocks hurtling down the cliffs on both sides of the gorge. “We were running back and forth . . . the rocks just kept falling and it seemed like there was nowhere to go,” the 34-year-old former English teacher said.
“There were these huge rocks, the size of minivans, smashing buildings and cutting the trees in half.”
Ascolani, along with about 60 other tourists and 20 Nepalis, were immediately cut off in an area near Tibet, accessible only on foot or by helicopter.
They were trapped in a gorge -- unable to walk out because of constant rockfalls from the vertiginous slopes.
He described how they sheltered under boulders and rigged tarpaulins between trees to sleep under. They boiled up muddy water from the river, filtering it using plastic bottles and gauze, and started their own fires.
They also built an outdoor toilet using tarpaulin and a plastic chair with a hole in it – all skills Ascolani says he learnt through from Survivor.
“I have hiked before and I had watched lots of Survivor, so I knew things like how to start a fire, how to find food, shelter,” he said.
One Israeli hiker had a satellite messaging device, which meant the trekkers could contact loved ones.
A Dutch medical student tended to two Nepalis injured by falling rocks and the group built a rudimentary helipad, drawing a circle with sand and rocks and using leaves to make the letter “H” to attract attention.
On the third day after the quake a helicopter landed, but hopes of rescue were dashed when the pilots said they were only there to evacuate Japanese nationals.
A few hours later two more choppers came, this time with an order to evacuate only Israelis.
After another 36 hours had passed with no sign of helicopters the mood in the village grew increasingly sombre, until Ascolani finally spotted a US chopper, which made multiple trips and flew them all to safety. – AFP