Nepali emergency teams are concentrating their efforts on three specific hydropower project tunnels in the Himalayan region, hoping to locate dozens of workers who may be stranded inside. This operation comes two weeks after a devastating flood triggered by a glacier collapse killed hundreds and left thousands unaccounted for across Nepal and China’s Tibet autonomous region.
The disaster struck on August 26, when a glacier collapsed into a river along the Nepal-China border. The resulting surge engulfed at least 11 hydropower sites, burying tunnel entrances under heavy debris and mud and severing escape routes for those working underground.
Dharma Raj Upreti, head of Nepal’s disaster management authority, confirmed that search priorities are currently directed toward the Chilime hydroelectric project, the Upper Trishuli 3A, and the Upper Trishuli 3B sites. These latter two projects share an interconnected tunnel system.
“Our search operation is focussed on finding survivors, including in tunnels. Our bigger focus is on the Chilime hydroelectric project, where we believe people are trapped, because there was a canteen, residency and arrangements for food,” Upreti told Reuters.
Upreti added that oxygen is being pumped into the tunnels via pipes and that specialized equipment has been dispatched to help breach the debris blocking access.
Prime Minister Balendra Shah pledged that rescue operations would continue without pause. In a social media post late Monday, he stated, “We know our responsibility and its sensitivity. We are translating the humanitarian spirit of the Nepali people into practice through the search and rescue operation.”
Army rescuers estimated on Monday that approximately 121 of the roughly 900 missing individuals from the hydroelectric projects could be confined within these tunnels. However, officials noted that some missing persons may have been stationed at other areas of the power plants rather than inside the extensive tunnel networks.
Recent days have seen limited but significant success, with four individuals rescued. A Chinese national was pulled from a tunnel on Saturday, while two hydropower workers were freed from another tunnel on Friday. Additionally, a Nepali woman was rescued from her buried home on Saturday.
The death toll from the mudslide has reached at least 1,399 in Nepal, with more than 5,400 people missing across both nations. As of Saturday, records indicated 43 deaths and 519 missing persons on the Chinese side of the border. Xinhua, China’s state news agency, reported on Tuesday that none of the recovered bodies in Tibet were foreign nationals.
Authorities in both Nepal and China have attributed the glacier collapse to climate change.
121 people might be trapped in those three tunnels? That is a terrifying number. How can they possibly dig through all that debris quickly?
Four survivors rescued is a small but hopeful number. The oxygen pumping sounds like a clever strategy to buy them more time.
Why focus so heavily on Chilime? Were safety protocols properly followed at all these hydropower sites, or is this a preventable tragedy?
It is heartbreaking to see such a massive loss of life. I hope the rescue teams can reach those trapped in the tunnels safely.