Nepal rescuers search hydropower tunnels for trapped workers after glacier-triggered floods

Nepalese rescuers are searching three hydropower project tunnels for workers who may be trapped after a glacier collapse triggered flooding on the Nepal-China border on 26 August.

Authorities have identified the Chilime, Upper Trishuli 3A and Upper Trishuli 3B projects as the main search areas. The collapse engulfed at least 11 hydropower projects, burying tunnel entrances beneath mud and debris.

Oxygen has been supplied through pipes, while additional equipment has been sent to help teams open passages into the tunnels. Army rescuers estimate that about 121 of the 900 people missing from the hydropower projects may have been inside the tunnels, although others may have been working elsewhere at the plants.

Four people have recently been rescued, including a Chinese national who was pulled from a tunnel. The other survivors include two hydropower workers and a Nepali woman rescued from a buried house.

Nepal’s disaster authority said the search was focused on finding survivors, particularly at Chilime, where a canteen, accommodation and food arrangements suggested workers may have been inside. Prime Minister Balendra Shah has vowed that rescue operations will continue.

Authorities have reported at least 1,399 deaths and more than 5,400 people missing in Nepal and Tibet. Nepal and China have attributed the glacier collapse to climate change, while the reported casualty figures remain subject to change.