Day of Mourning in Nepal

IN THE PAUL RESCUE TEAMS ARE WORKING AROUND THE CLOCK TO FIND ANY SURVIVORS. THE CATASTROPHIC FLOODING 1300 PEOPLE HAVE BEEN KILLED, BUT THOUSANDS REMAIN MISSING OVER THE WEEKEND TO THE ASSOCIATED PRESS REPORTED 2 SURVIVORS WERE FOUND AND SAVED ONE FROM A WATER TUNNEL AND THE OTHER ON TOP OF A 4 STORY BUILDING IN HONOR OF THOSE WHO LOST THEIR LIVES IN THE DISASTER. NEPAL OBSERVED A NATIONAL DAY OF MOURNING ON MONDAY. TRADITIONAL RITUALS AND CANDLELIGHT VIGILS WERE HELD ALL ACROSS THE NATION AS THE SYMBOLIC FUNERAL FOR THOSE WHO DIED IN THE FLOODS. >> FOR MORE, I'M JOINED BY DR PREM CHAP AGAIN, PROFESSOR OF PHYSICS AT FLORIDA INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY. THANK YOU FOR JOINING US TODAY. >> THANK YOU FOR HAVING ME. >> NOW YOU LEAD AN ANNUAL STUDY ABROAD TO NEPAL FOR STUDENTS, INCLUDING SOME FGCU STUDENTS. AND YOU HAD RECENTLY RETURNED FROM THE NATION PRIOR TO THE CATASTROPHIC FLOODS. WHAT WAS YOUR REACTION? IS THIS TRAGEDY UNFOLDED? >> IT WAS A SHOCK AND THEN. NEW POLL IS PRONE TO SOME OF THESE DISASTERS. BUT THIS WAS UNPRECEDENTED. THIS WAS A SHOCKING LEVEL. >> HOW DID YOU HELP YOUR STUDENTS WHO HAD JUST RETURNED PROCESS, THIS DEVASTATION THAT THEY WERE SEEING ON THE NEWS IN A PLACE THEY HAD JUST SPENT QUITE A FEW WEEK SON. >> YEAH. IMMEDIATELY AFTER THE STUDENTS LEARNED THEY REACHED OUT TO ME AND I ALSO REACHED OUT TO THEM. I MENTION THAT MY FAMILY IS FINE. THEY'RE ASKING ABOUT THAT. SO. YEAH, IT WAS VERY DIFFICULT PROCESS. THEY ALSO COULD NOT BELIEVE THAT, YOU DEVASTATION OF THIS KILL WOULD HAPPEN TO A PLACE THAT THEY JUST HAD VISITED. >> AND YOU HAD MENTIONED THAT YOU DO HAVE FAMILY THERE AND I'M SURE QUITE A FEW RELATIVES. WHAT IS THEIR STATUS? >> SO MY DAD, MY BROTHER AND 2 SISTERS, THEY LIVE IN KATHMANDU IS. IN A SAFER ZONE WHEN IT CAME TO THE FLOOD. SO THEY'RE DOING FINE. BUT LIKE? FOR THIS KIND OF DISASTER, YOU KNOW, EVERYONE IS AFFECTED ONE WAY OR ANOTHER. FOR EXAMPLE, MY BROTHER IS A PRINCIPAL, A SCHOOL THAT ACTUALLY HAS STUDENTS FROM THAT AREA AND THEY HAD THEIR FAMILIES IN AND HOUSES LAST. SO, YEAH, IT IS AFFECTING EVERYONE. >> WHAT IS YOUR HOPE IS FAR AS THE RESPONSE INTERNATIONALLY TO THIS CRISIS FROM FLORIDIANS. >> SO FAR THE INTERNATIONAL RESPONSE HAS BEEN INCREDIBLE. THERE HAS BEEN TREMENDOUS SUPPORT, BOTH IN RESCUE AND SEARCH OPERATIONS AND ALSO MONEY TURLEY. THE COUNTRY NEEDS FUNDING IN ITS GETTING THE SUPPORT THAT WE NEED RIGHT NOW. BUT IN THE FUTURE, I THINK IT IS AT A MUCH A BIGGER SCALE IN TERMS OF THE. PSYCHOLOGICAL OR SOCIETAL AND PROBLEMS THAT THE COUNTRY IS FACING, ESPECIALLY BECAUSE A LOT OF HEADROOM POWERS HAVE BEEN DESTROYED. THERE ARE A LOT OF PROJECTS HAVE BEEN DESTROYED. BREEZES TOWNS HAVE BEEN DESTROYED. SO IT'S GOING TO TAKE A LOT OF EFFORT IN THE COUNTRY WILL NEED INTERNATIONAL SUPPORT AND THAT AS WELL. >> NOW I SEE THAT YOUR APPLICATION WINDOW. IT OPENS THIS WEEK FOR THE 2027 STUDY-ABROAD. SO THIS HAS NOT DETERRED YOU. AND YOU STILL PLAN TO TAKE STUDENTS AGAIN. WHAT DO YOU HOPE TO ACCOMPLISH WITH THE STUDENTS ON THIS NEXT TRIP? >> THE COUNTRY REMAINS AND EXTRAORDINARY CULTURAL AND A NATURAL DESTINATION. SO IT IS STILL OPEN. MOST OF THE COUNTRY IS STILL NOT AFFECTED. IT'S A MORE LOCALIZED. SO WE'LL GET TO GO TO THE MAJOR PLACES THAT WE HAVE PLANNED FOR, FOR EXAMPLE, KATHMANDU, POKER AND LOU, MANY JUST BUDDHA'S BIRTHPLACE. SO WE CAN STILL SAFELY TRAVEL TO THOSE AREAS AND TRAVELING TO THE POLLS ACTUALLY SUPPORTS THE LOCAL PEOPLE, GUYTON ECONOMY. AND I THINK THEY NEED US MORE THAN EVER. SO WILL DO IT SAFELY. BUT, YOU KNOW, THE PLAN IS STILL THERE. >> DOES THIS TRAGEDY AND WHERE IT OCCURRED? DOES THIS CHANGE YOUR ITINERARY AT ALL COMPARED TO WHAT YOU WHERE YOU WANT THIS YEAR. >> SO SOME PART >> PARTS OF ROADS HAVE BEEN DESTROYED. THEY ARE REBUILDING AND SO CONNECTING, FOR EXAMPLE, POKER AND UNDER THESE ARE 2 MAJOR CITIES. SO THE LIFELINE HAS BEEN DESTROYED BUT THE GOVERNMENT IS WORKING TIRELESSLY TO GET THE ROUTE OPEN IN TIME. AND I THINK IT WILL BE JUST A MATTER OF FEW WEEKS BEFORE THE ROUTE OPENS AND WE SHOULD BE ABLE TO TRAVEL SAFELY BY NEXT YEAR. >> DOCTORS ARE ANYTHING ELSE THAT YOU'D LIKE TO SHARE WITH US ABOUT NEPAL THAT WE AS JUST AS AMERICANS, WE OUR HEARTS ARE GOING OUT TO YOUR NATION. YOUR HOMELAND. >> I WOULD SAY THAT IT IS ONE OF THE MOST BEAUTIFUL PLACES, BOTH IN TERMS OF NATURAL BEAUTY AND ALSO PEOPLE ARE INCREDIBLY WELCOMING. SO IT IS ALMOST LIKE IT ALLOWED IN. YOU KNOW, POPULATION STUDIES WAR THE GEOGRAPHICAL IN A NATURAL DIVERSITY. I WOULD SAY BECAUSE IT HAS LIKE HIGH HUMAN LAYERS TO LAND PLANES. IT HAS ALL SORTS OF BIO BIOLOGICALLY DIVERSE YOU KNOW, PLANTS, ANIMALS AND CULTURES. YOU KNOW, THEY'RE SHAPED BY THE THE TERRAIN AND THE FOOD AND LANGUAGES. IT HAS LIKE MORE THAN 100 ACTIVISTS SPOKEN LANGUAGES. SO IN A VERY SMALL AREA, YOU GET TO SEE, YOU KNOW, ALL THE WAY FROM 8,000 METERS PEAK, TOO. THEY JUST 100 METERS A LITTLE INC. SO IT IS REALLY, REALLY GOOD PLACE TO GO AND LEARN ABOUT THE CULTURE AND HISTORY. AND SO AND SO, YEAH, I WOULD SAY THAT IT IS POLICE 2 TO VISIT, AT LEAST ONCE IN A LIFETIME. >> WELL, DOCTOR, THANK YOU FOR SHARING THIS WITH US. AND WE WISH YOU THE BEST OF LUCK. >> THANK YOU SO MUCH.