A dramatic video showing a group of people on a bridge trying to rescue a man being swept away by floodwaters has gone viral on social media.
The video is shared with users claiming it shows a rescue operation during the catastrophic floods that struck Nepal on August 26.
A social media user shared the video with a caption that reads, “SCENES OF DESPERATION IN NEPAL. Amid the raging waters, people risk their lives trying to save a man trapped during the flood. The footage captures the desperation of the people in the face of the extremely strong current. So far, there is no confirmation as to whether the man survived.”
SouthCheck found that the claim is false. The viral video is of the Valle de Santiago area of Mexico in 2025, where heavy rainfall caused severe flooding.
A closer examination of the video revealed that the man in the green T-shirt was wearing a logo of PEMEX, Mexico's state-owned petroleum company. This provided an early clue that the video originated in Mexico, not Nepal.
Moreover, a Google Reverse Image Search revealed that the same video was shared by the official Facebook page of Mexican news outlet ‘Tv10 Noticias Gto’, which posted the video on August 24. According to the caption, the video was filmed in the Valle de Santiago area of Mexico, where heavy rainfall caused severe flooding.
The caption read, “A motorcyclist was swept away by the current into a ditch in the municipality of Valle de Santiago, but neighbours managed to rescue him alive. The incident occurred after heavy rains flooded streets and homes, causing alarm in the area.”
Using this information, we searched with relevant keywords and found that the incident was also reported by a Mexican website, Guanajuatoinforma, on August 22. According to the report, a man was swept away by the strong current of the Los Pirules stream in Valle de Santiago, Mexico, while attempting to cross it on a motorcycle. Witnesses on a nearby bridge quickly coordinated a rescue and pulled him to safety. The motorcycle was carried away by the water and had not been recovered. The man reportedly escaped without serious injuries.
Hence, we can ascertain that the viral claim is false.