Nepal rescue ops? These videos are from UK, Mexico & Venezuela

The deadly flash floods and landslides have killed more than 1,000 people in Nepal. At least 4,000 more remain missing. Social media is now full of videos of the ongoing rescue operations. India Today Fact Check, however, found that many of these clips are actually from other countries. In this story, we will debunk three such videos.CAVE EXPLORATION IN UKThis video shows a person equipped with safety gear crawling through muddy water in a small dark cave. It’s been widely shared on social media and news outlets like the Dainik Bhaskar as a rescue operation in Nepal.The truth: This video was originally posted by a woman called Jacqui Cowling on August 26 with the caption, “The font at GG in Yorkshire.” GG stands for Gaping Gill, one of the most famous caves in the Yorkshire Dales National Park in England.Her photos suggest she is a caving and adventure sports enthusiast. Responding to one of the comments on her post, Jacqui Cowling wrote, “After this trip I had a beer with your sister-in-law. Was lovely to see her.” This makes it clear the video is not from Nepal.MOTORCYCLIST FROM MEXICO This video shows a group of people standing over a concrete structure, trying to prevent a man from being swept away by the strong currents of the water below. News18 Rajasthan shared it as a rescue operation in Nepal.The truth: This video is from the Mexican state of Guanajuato. One can see the logo of Pemex, the Mexican state-owned petroleum company, on the green T-shirt of a man in the video.A Mexican news outlet, TV10 Noticias Gto, shared the viral video on August 24. According to it, a motorcyclist was swept away by currents in the municipality of Valle de Santiago, but locals managed to rescue him.Several Mexican news outlets shared videos of this incident recorded from a different angle around the same time. As per these posts, the incident took place in the Los Pirules area of Valle de Santiago.EARTHQUAKE IN VENEZUELAThis video shows rescue workers saving a woman trapped in the debris. This was also shared in the context of the Nepal floods.The truth: A reverse search of the video’s frames led us to a June 25 news report that said the video was from Venezuela. Turkish news outlet TRT also shared the video on June 26, and said the woman was pulled out alive from the rubble of a house that collapsed during the earthquakes in Venezuela.Thus, it’s clear that these videos have nothing to do with Nepal.- EndsPublished By: Pathikrit SanyalPublished On: Sep 2, 2026 14:11 IST