Nepal rescuers race to reach any survivors trapped in tunnels a week after disaster
“We are very confident that there is life in there,” a Nepal Electricity Authority board member says of trapped workers in hydropower tunnels.
People look at photographs of missing people on a wall outside Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital following the deadly flash floods and mudslide, reacting outside Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital in Kathmandu, Nepal, on Sep 2, 2026. (Photo: Reuters/Athit Perawongmetha)
KATHMANDU: Rescue teams raced on Wednesday (Sep 2) to reach dozens of workers believed to be trapped inside hydropower tunnels in Nepal's mountains, offering one of the last hopes of finding survivors a week after a Himalayan flood killed more than 1,200 people.
The flood, triggered by the collapse of a glacier near Nepal's border with China, devastated towns and valleys across the mountainous region. At least 1,204 people have been confirmed dead, and more than 4,200 remain missing.
Rescue efforts have increasingly centred on hydroelectric project tunnels where authorities believe workers may have survived after being cut off by floodwaters and debris.
Some tunnels contain chambers with air supplies, and rescuers were trying to reach about 900 missing workers.
"CONFIDENT" THERE IS LIFE
"We are very confident that there is life in there because ... there is food and water in the building, that was likely built for communication purposes and as a resting place," Amshu Kiran Shahi, a board member of the Nepal Electricity Authority, told Reuters.
The chance of finding survivors elsewhere was fading, authorities said, but there was no let-up in rescue operations as teams scoured the mountainside along the border with China where floods tore through towns and valleys.
"The hope of finding survivors is decreasing," said Phanindra Paudel, a senior official at Nepal's National Emergency Operation Center. "We pray and are hopeful. Hope is hope."
Prime Minister Balendra Shah told parliament the search would continue.
"Our priority remains clear: To continue our search and rescue operations, find those who are still missing and continue supporting everyone affected," he said.
INTERNATIONAL TEAMS INVOLVED IN RESCUE ATTEMPTS
Major rescue operations were under way or planned at four hydropower projects. Two sites, where about 90 people are missing, offered the strongest prospect of finding survivors because of the presence of air inside the tunnels, Shahi said.
At Trishuli-3A, officials believe there was a dry chamber inside and expected oxygen to be flowing through the tunnel, with pipes also being used to push oxygen inside, Shahi said.
Specialised rescue teams from India, China and the United States were involved in the tunnel rescue attempts.
Across the border in Tibet, China raised its death toll to 21, with 541 others still listed as missing.
CHILDREN WHO SURVIVED ARE FEARFUL AND ANXIOUS
In Nepal, residents walked around the remains of what were once bustling villages and towns, trying to salvage whatever they could of their belongings.
"My husband and I were able to escape safely. But we could not pick up anything," said Shanta Sunar, 45, a shopkeeper from Nuwakot. "We have lost whatever we had. But we are lucky nothing happened to us."
Children in Nuwakot and Rasuwa areas are increasingly showing signs of psychological distress after witnessing the torrent last week, Save the Children said in a statement.
Many said they were fearful and anxious after witnessing wide-ranging horrors, including school buses full of friends washed away, their homes submerged and everything they hold dear carried away by the waters, the aid group said.
CHALLENGES FOR DISPLACED SURVIVORS
Experts say one of Nepal’s next challenges will be moving thousands of displaced survivors from emergency shelters into longer-term housing.
“A lot of people right now are in temporary shelters, which are often schools and other buildings,” said David Sanderson, a professor at the University of New South Wales in Sydney and founder of the HowWeSurvive initiative, which focuses on disaster recovery and resilience efforts.
“Tents quickly arrive from the international aid from China, from elsewhere. And tents are obviously a short-term thing,” he told CNA’s Asia First programme.
But moving people into longer-term accommodation can be a complicated process, he said, warning that “temporary shelter can stick people in temporary housing for years”.
Sanderson also said that conditions in temporary shelters can raise protection concerns, particularly for women and children.
“Sexual and gender based violence goes up very often after a disaster … keeping women and children in particular safe in these situations is top priority.”
Health risks are another concern, with water and sanitation systems damaged by the disaster.
Sanderson said aid organisations would have to remain alert to a range of health risks.
“Clean water will be top priority for good agencies and government bodies to provide and keeping warm as well. But the risk of airborne diseases, I suppose, and other things has to be encountered.”
Prime Minister Shah said the government was working to restore power, telecommunications and transport links, with 95 per cent of telecom services in affected areas restored by Tuesday. The disaster has disrupted 431 megawatts of electricity-generating capacity, he said.
"This was one of the major disasters experienced by human civilisation," Shah said. "As soon as information was received that the flood was approaching, our security personnel were deployed to warn local residents. Some of those personnel themselves went missing."
