2 rescued from Nepal tunnel nine days after monster floods; more voices heard

Two people have been rescued from Nepal's Trishuli 3A Hydropower Station in the country's Rasuwa district, nine days after the catastrophic flash floods. Rescue teams said more voices have floated from deep within the tunnel, raising hopes of the number of survivors increasing.

In a Facebook post, Rastriya Swatantra Party lawmaker Shri Ram Neupane, also an engineer who has been involved in the rescue operation at the tunnel, identified the two workers as Sanjay Sah, a mechanical foreman, and Kabir Maharjan, a mechanical supervisor.

Sah was brought out first, followed by Maharjan.

The Nepal Army also posted a video of the workers being pulled out of the tunnel, where at least 40 people are still reportedly trapped. Meanwhile, over 900 workers remain unaccounted for from at least six hydropower plants in the country..

Speaking to a medical team after his rescue, Sah said he was inside the control room when the flash flood struck. As chaos unfolded, Sah said his first instinct was not to save himself but to get others out.

“I was working in the control room. My responsibility was to save everyone’s life,” he said, adding that immediately alerted those around him and asked them to flee.

But in trying to ensure others escaped safely, he lost precious time and eventually found himself trapped inside.

“I told everyone to run. In doing that, my time was lost. In the end, I could not get out,” he said.

With no way out and rescue still distant, Sah said he spent his time inside reciting a mantra as he waited for help to reach him.

He also gave rescuers an indication of how many people may have been trapped around him. Sah said he was able to hear or communicate with three or four people in his immediate vicinity, either through their voices or by making noises.

However, Sah said the number of people trapped could be higher, particularly in the deeper sections of the unnel and around the powerhouse. The force of the floodwater, he said, may have swept some people further inside.

“There could be. Not everyone may have been able to escape. The tunnel is very long,” he said.

Earlier in the day, Neupane said in a Facebook post that rescue workers had heard more than one voice from inside the tunnel as they moved deeper into the passage.

“Information has been received from the rescue team that the voices of people have been heard from inside. When the rescue team said, ‘Don’t panic, we are rescuing you,’ a response was received from inside,” he said.

Neupane said teams from the Nepali Army and Armed Police Force were intensifying their efforts and entering the tunnel as part of the rescue operation.

“Receiving information that people are speaking from inside the tunnel is a promising sign,” he said, expressing hope that those trapped would be rescued safely.

Neupane also expressed his gratitude to the Nepali Army, Armed Police, technical teams and other rescuers involved in the operation, saying he hoped “good news of a safe rescue” would emerge soon.

While rescue operations have been hampered by damaged infrastructure, poor weather and the difficulty of accessing the underground facilities, the Nepali Army and Armed Police Force have intensified efforts to reach the tunnel.

Heavy machinery and specialised equipment have been deployed to clear the mud and debris blocking the underground passages.

Amid the glimmer of hope, a grim discovery was reported at another hydropwer project.

At the Rasuwa Langtang Khola Hydropower Project, a Nepal Army search-and-rescue team recovered the bodies of two people from inside the tunnel during the ongoing operation, with rescuers having advanced around 150 metres into the passage.

According to the information available, 41 people deployed at the 20-MW hydropower project remain uncontacted, keeping families in agonising suspense as rescue teams battle to reach those still trapped.

For families waiting outside, every development has brought a mix of hope and fear.

Relatives of workers trapped at Trishuli 3A have been moving between government offices and Army Headquarters, desperately seeking information about their loved ones. Some have also travelled towards the affected sites as rescue operations continue.

The wife of an engineer trapped inside the project said several days had passed with little meaningful progress, but the family was still holding on to hope that the workers would survive.

As of Friday, the death toll in Nepal stands at 1,259, while 5,053 people remain unaccounted for.