Nepal tunnel rescuers seek trapped workers but hit dead ends
KATHMANDU: Nepali rescuers searched Wednesday for survivors feared trapped inside hydropower tunnels a week after devastating floods, but hopes were fading as teams hit dead ends and no one was confirmed alive.
KATHMANDU: Nepalese search teams scoured hydropower tunnels one week after catastrophic floods, but optimism waned as they discovered numerous cul-de-sacs and no living individuals confirmed. The authorities had initially presumed over 100 workers could survive within the multiple tunnels. The ongoing search and rescue mission, bolstered by international assistance, persists despite the arduous conditions.
The terrain is inundated with mud, debris, and sludge, compounding the challenges faced by the rescue crews. The missing are among 639 hydropower workers who have been unaccounted for since the torrential wall of mud and debris descended on August 26, as per NDRRMA statistics. Accessing the tunnels has been problematic at times, with some entry points elusive while others were found blocked by mud.
Nevertheless, rescuers have managed to recover at least three bodies from two tunnels on Monday and penetrated several hundred meters into others, but their progress was halted by the overwhelming mud. Energy Minister Biraj Bhakta Shrestha revealed on Tuesday that 11 hydropower stations and one solar power station, generating a combined 431.1 megawatts, were incapacitated, accounting for approximately 10 percent of the nation's electricity generation capacity.
Furthermore, 15 power projects under construction, intended to yield 470 megawatts, sustained damage.
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