Head teacher evacuated 900 children minutes before Nepal floods hit

A headteacher has told how he saved 900 pupils' lives from the Nepal floods - by quickly evacuating them just 10 minutes before the waters hit. Rajendra Dawadi, who is in charge of Tribhuvan Trishuli Secondary School in Nuwakot, told the BBC he had received four calls at 09:10 local time (03:25 GMT) warning about the disaster, which has now claimed at least 794 lives. He quickly decided to evacuate, telling the children to run to higher ground and ordering buses full of students to turn around to flee the area. Dawadi said: "If we didn't make a quick decision, if it was 10 minutes later, we all - including the students and me - wouldn't be able to speak to you today." The warnings had come from four different people in the space of minutes and helped him evaluate the impending danger. "A parent came and told me that 'a big flood was coming, I am here to take my daughter, I will take her'," he added. "Parents don't rush without a strong reason, so it was confirmed that I shouldn't waste a second to evacuate the children. "I decided I shouldn't delay any more. Even if the flood was not coming, it was just a matter of a single day's classes. "I feel proud that we saved so many lives."