Kathmandu, Sept 4:
Two workers trapped inside a tunnel at Nepal’s Trishuli 3A Hydropower Station were rescued alive on Friday, nine days after catastrophic flash floods struck the region, raising fresh hopes that more people could still be found alive inside the flooded underground passages.
The two workers were identified as Sanjay Sah, a mechanical foreman, and Kabir Maharjan, a mechanical supervisor. Sah was brought out first, followed by Maharjan, after rescue teams managed to reach deeper sections of the tunnel in Rasuwa district.
The breakthrough came after rescuers reported hearing voices from inside the tunnel. According to Rastriya Swatantra Party lawmaker Shri Ram Neupane, who is also an engineer involved in the rescue operation, teams heard more than one voice as they advanced through the tunnel.
Neupane said rescuers called out to those trapped, telling them not to panic and that efforts were under way to bring them out. A response was reportedly heard from inside, giving rescue teams a crucial indication that survivors remained in the tunnel.
The Nepal Army and Armed Police Force subsequently intensified their operation, deploying heavy machinery and specialised equipment to remove mud and debris blocking the underground passages. The operation has been complicated by damaged infrastructure, difficult access to the underground facilities and poor weather conditions.
The rescue of the two workers came nine days after the devastating August 26 disaster, which caused widespread destruction across parts of Nepal. The floods and landslides severely affected hydropower projects in the mountainous region, leaving hundreds of workers unaccounted for.
At least 40 people were reportedly missing from the Trishuli 3A project, while more than 900 workers were still unaccounted for across at least six hydropower plants in Nepal, according to the India Today report.
The survival of Sah and Maharjan has therefore provided a major boost to the continuing search operations. Their rescue demonstrates that workers may have survived for days inside sections of the tunnels despite the flooding and debris that sealed off access.
The rescue operation, however, has also produced grim discoveries. At the Rasuwa Langtang Khola Hydropower Project, a Nepal Army search-and-rescue team recovered the bodies of two people from inside a tunnel after advancing approximately 150 metres into the passage.
Around 41 people working at the 20-MW project remained uncontacted, according to information cited by India Today, leaving their families waiting anxiously for news.
Families of workers missing from Trishuli 3A have been seeking information from government offices and Army headquarters, with some relatives travelling towards the disaster-hit areas. The uncertainty has added to the emotional toll of the disaster as rescue teams race against time to reach possible survivors.
The wider disaster has left Nepal facing a massive humanitarian and rescue challenge. India Today reported that, as of Friday, 1,259 people had died and 5,053 remained unaccounted for following the floods. Other reports have cited varying casualty figures as authorities continue to update their assessments.
The successful rescue at Trishuli 3A has now renewed the focus on tunnels at other hydropower projects where workers remain missing. Rescue teams are continuing to clear debris and search for signs of life, with every sound from beneath the rubble offering a potential lifeline to families waiting outside.