Nepal Puts All Efforts Into Rescuing 900 People Trapped in Tunnels

On the first day of the week since a massive flood struck the Himalayan region along the Nepal-China border, Nepalese authorities are making every effort to locate more than 900 missing people believed to be trapped in hydropower tunnels and other sites in the hardest-hit areas.
Nepal's disaster management authority said it is focusing its resources on rescuing workers trapped in tunnels at six hydropower facilities. Rescue operations are under way to reach workers stranded inside tunnels at the Trishuli 3A and 3B hydropower plants in Bagmati Province. Rescue teams succeeded the previous day in drilling four holes into the top of one tunnel and entering it. They are now checking the location and condition of those trapped inside. Nepalese authorities said rescuers are removing mud and rocks and working their way into the pit to secure access to the tunnel.
Raja Ram Basnet, a Nepal Army spokesperson, said, "There is a huge amount of debris piled up, making it difficult to open the tunnel," adding, "Our immediate priority is to open the tunnel first."
Narendra Pariyar, the administrative chief of Rasuwa, the worst-hit area, said rescue work picked up speed after the weather cleared on Friday morning. However, rain resumed in the evening, raising concerns about secondary damage such as additional landslides. In particular, authorities are worried about the possibility of another collapse of a large glacial lake formed by the breakup of a glacier.
In the tunnel of the Upper Trishuli-1 Hydropower Project, where nine missing South Koreans had been working, rescuers recovered one body the previous day, and Nepal Army search-and-rescue operations are also continuing. Mohan Kumar Dangi, chairman of the Independent Power Producers' Association of Nepal, told Associated Press (AP) that contact had been lost with 576 people at the Upper Trishuli-1 project, and that about 300 of them are believed to be trapped inside the tunnel.
Nepal's disaster management authority said the death toll from flooding in Nepal had risen to at least 987 as of Friday. Combined with 16 deaths reported in China, the overall death toll from the flood has reached 1,003, surpassing the 1,000 mark. The number of missing people has risen to 4,462, including 3,916 in Nepal and 546 in China.
[email protected] Lee Seok-woo, international affairs specialist Reporter