Kathmandu, Nepal, September 4: Two people were rescued alive from a tunnel at the Trishuli 3A hydropower project in Nepal on Friday, nine days after flooding trapped workers inside, the Nepalese Army said.
The two men were identified as Sanjay Sah, a mechanical foreman, and Kabir Maharjan, a mechanical supervisor. They were airlifted to Kathmandu. Sah will be treated at Birendra Army Hospital in Chhauni, while Maharjan will be taken to the National Trauma Centre.
The rescue operation followed communication between rescuers and people believed to be trapped inside the tunnel. According to the rescue team, voices of more than one person were heard during the operation.
The tunnel was sealed by flooding triggered by the Bhotekoshi River in Rasuwa on August 26. Rescue teams comprising personnel from the Nepali Army and Armed Police Force entered the tunnel and intensified the search and rescue operation.
Rastriya Swatantra Party lawmaker Shreeram Neupane, who had been involved in the rescue operation, said the team had received information that people were speaking from inside the tunnel. He said the rescue teams had established communication with those inside.
The Nepalese Army also shared details of the rescue operation in a post on X.
Search and rescue operations had continued for nine days to locate people believed to be trapped inside the tunnel.
Meanwhile, the death toll from the Nepal floods has risen to 1,290, according to the Nepal Police.