17 bodies found in UP’s Gandak; search for Nepal flood victims continues

Rescue teams in Nepal are working tirelessly to reach the hundreds of workers believed to be trapped inside hydropower tunnels following a deadly flood last week. The primary focus is on rescuing 933 workers across 11 hydropower projects, primarily located in the affected districts of Rasuwa and Nuwakot. Rescue efforts involve using heavy machinery to navigate through debris-laden tunnels in the dark.

Nepalese army spokesman Raja Ram Basnet expressed the challenges faced by the rescuers, stating that a significant amount of debris has been deposited, making it difficult to open the tunnels. Their main priority now is to clear the tunnels and reach the trapped workers. The catastrophic flood, caused by a glacier collapse, resulted in at least 903 confirmed deaths and has left nearly 5,000 people missing, including the 933 workers.

Among the missing, at least 590 are foreigners from 39 different countries, according to Nepal's foreign ministry.

Prime Minister Balendra Shah described the disaster as "unprecedented and devastating," emphasizing the difficulty in assessing the full extent of the damage. Authorities on the Chinese side of the border reported 16 deaths in Gyirong County, with 546 people still unaccounted for. While Nepal does not require external assistance for general search and rescue operations, they have sought help from India and China for their expertise in tunnel rescue.

However, rescue operations have been interrupted multiple times due to severe weather conditions and concerns that the lake formed across the Nepal-China border by the disaster might trigger further flooding as it begins to overflow into Nepal's rivers.