2 trapped workers rescued from hydropower tunnel 9 days after Nepal floods
Summary
Rescuers in Nepal pulled two workers alive from the Trishuli 3A hydropower tunnel in Kathmandu on Friday, nine days after floods likely caused by a glacier collapse swept through the area. Officials said emergency teams were still trying to reach others believed trapped inside, while both rescued men were flown to a hospital in stable condition. Nepalese authorities said at least 557 workers are missing from the project and roughly 115 may be trapped in the main tunnel.
Key Facts
- Officials identified the rescued men as a mechanical foreman and a mechanical supervisor.
- Local television showed the first rescued worker covered in mud and being carried away on a rescuer’s shoulder.
- At least 1,259 people were killed in the floods and more than 5,000 remain missing, according to Nepal’s disaster management agency.
- About 900 workers are missing from 12 hydropower projects in Nepal, with roughly 500 believed to be trapped in tunnels, according to local authorities.
Anil shah, a survivor rescued from a tunnel of the Upper Trishuli 3A hydropower project nine days after the deadly flash floods and a mudslide, is being carried to be air lifted to Kathmandu from an army base in Nuwakot, Nepal, Sept. 4. Reuters-Yonhap
KATHMANDU, Nepal — Rescuers in Nepal pulled two workers alive from a hydropower tunnel Friday as emergency teams continued an operation to reach others believed to be trapped inside, officials said.
The two men were rescued from the Trishuli 3A tunnel nine days after floods, likely caused by a glacier collapse, devastated towns and swept away villages in Nepal on Aug. 26.
Nepalese lawmaker Shri Ram Neupane posted about the second rescue on his Facebook page shortly after army spokesperson Brig. Gen. Raja Ram Basnet confirmed the first trapped worker’s rescue. Officials identified the two men as a mechanical foreman and a mechanical supervisor.
Local television news channels showed images of the first rescued worker covered in mud and being carried from the site on a rescuer’s shoulder. Officials said both men were in stable condition and were flown to a hospital in Kathmandu.
At least 557 workers are missing from the Trishuli 3A hydropower project along the Trishuli River, with about 115 believed to be trapped in the main tunnel, according to the Independent Power Producers Association of Nepal.
A survivor is carried by members of a search and rescue team after they rescued two people alive who had been trapped inside a tunnel at the Trishuli-3A Hydropower Project following devastating floods and mudslides that struck the Bhotekoshi River in Rasuwa, Nepal, Sept. 4, in this handout photo by Nepal Army. Reuters-Yonhap
Officials present at the rescue site said rescuers believe some people may still be alive inside the tunnel.
Nepal’s Communication Minister Bikram Timilsina said officials remain hopeful that more workers will be rescued.
“We are waiting for the rescue of more and more people,” Timilsina wrote on his Facebook page.
At least 1,259 people were killed in the floods and more than 5,000 remain missing, according to the country’s disaster management agency. China, as of late Wednesday , said 21 people were killed and 541 were missing on the Tibet side of the border.
About 900 workers are missing from 12 hydropower projects in Nepal, with roughly 500 believed to be trapped in tunnels, according to local authorities.
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