Two men have been pulled alive from an underground tunnel at the Trishuli 3A hydropower plant in Nepal, nine days after catastrophic flash floods swept through the region, officials said Friday.
The men, identified by officials as a mechanical foreman and a mechanical supervisor, were located after rescue teams heard voices coming from inside the tunnel Friday morning, according to Nepalese lawmaker Shri Ram Neupane. Army spokesperson Brig. Gen. Raja Ram Basnet confirmed the rescue, and one of the survivors told rescuers that more people remained alive inside.
One of the men, identified as 30-year-old Sanjay Sah, was carried out on a rescuer's back and reportedly asked what day it had become before he lost track of time underground. He is in stable condition, according to hospital officials. The second man, 45-year-old Kabir Maharjan, is listed as critically ill. Both were flown to Birendra Army Hospital in Kathmandu for treatment.
The floods, believed to have been triggered by a glacier collapse, struck the Bhotekoshi River region on Nepal's border with China roughly nine days earlier, devastating towns and burying villages in mud and debris. Rescue crews had reportedly begun shifting from a rescue to a recovery operation before Friday's breakthrough.
According to the Independent Power Producers Association of Nepal, about 900 workers remain missing from 12 hydropower projects across the country, with roughly 500 believed trapped in various tunnels. An estimated 115 people are believed to be trapped at the Trishuli 3A site alone. The Nepal Army said 58 people in total were rescued Friday as search operations continued. The body of a third man was found at the site, according to CNN.
Search and rescue efforts at Trishuli 3A and other affected sites were ongoing as of Friday.
