WATCH DAY 22: Durban mother searches Nepal debris for missing daughter - IOL

Linda Govender is relentless in the search for her daughter Terricia.

Linda Govender has travelled through Nepal searching riverbanks and debris for clues about her missing daughter, Terricia, one of six South Africans unaccounted for after devastating floods.

She us also using a drone to help find any items which could belong to the South African missing pilgrims.

Today is 22 days since the flash floods caused widespread damage and claimed over 1,300 lives, with more than 5,000 people still missing.

Terricia, 33, was on pilgrimage with the Isha Foundation’s S3 travel group.

“We started our search along the riverbanks of Nuwakot, starting in a town called Bidur and working our way downriver to a town called Malekhu.

“We searched every patch of riverbank where we found debris while the far side of the river was searched by drone. Our objective was to find any piece of evidence of the missing S3 group members or potentially identifiable items that may help other families.

“While our search did not yield any results for S3, we again were left feeling very helpless at the scale of this disaster. Entire villages wiped out, the story of once vibrant communities buried under mud.

“We continue to follow up on any and all leads, our hope still burns bright. We are constantly reminded of how much good there is in this world, even when things seem hopeless,” she said.

Sashin Maharaj, who accompanied Govender to Nepal, said it was heartbreaking watching Govender digging through mud in search of anything that could signal that Terricia was in the area.

“Watching Aunty Linda digging through the mud broke my heart. It is a task no mother should ever have to experience.

“Watching her walk on the riverbanks calling for Terricia brought tears to all our eyes. She's continuing to be strong in an environment where most would have given up. 

“We promised when we came here, that we would leave no stone unturned, no avenue unchecked, and we did that this weekend. 

“We were joined by the team from Gideon Rescue Company from the USA over the weekend who assisted us in our search, adding a level of expertise and capability that we could never achieve alone.

“We worked from sunrise to sunset over the weekend, after which we had to say goodbye to the Gideon Rescue Company crew who had to fly back home.

“The skills we learned from the crew members of Gideon have empowered us to better identify and search areas of interest by ourselves, and we are eternally grateful for that,” Maharaj added.

He said they had to return to Kathmandu afterwards on account of weather.

“However we are still following up with the Chinese authorities to view the items recovered on the other side of the border.  We have also been in contact with several family members of other S3 group members and working together, we have been able to achieve more and provide support to each other,” he added.

Terricia and five other South African pilgrims - Barika Ramjee, 43, Vivaganathan Pillay, 66, and his wife Janet, 56; and 74-year-old Surendranath Maharaj and his wife Anitha, 67 - remain missing.