2 workers rescued from Nepal tunnel after voices heard
What's the story
Rescue workers have pulled two people out alive from a hydropower tunnel in Nepal nine days after the deadly flash floods. They were pulled out from inside the Trishuli 3A hydropower plant, where an operation has been ongoing to bore into a tunnel in search of 42 missing workers. The workers have been trapped there since the August 26 flash floods that left over 900 workers missing across at least 12 hydropower plants in the country.
Rescue
Two workers have been identified
Army spokesperson Brig Gen Raja Ram Basnet confirmed their rescue from a depth of 170 meters inside the tunnel.
The two workers have been identified as Sanjaya Shah and Kabir Maharjan. After their rescue, Shah was taken to the Nepal Army barracks in Trishuli.
Authorities believe around 30 to 40 people could still be alive inside these tunnels due to air pockets that may have formed during the flooding.
Twitter Post
Video shows rescue
#WATCH | Nepal | Rescue workers rescue one person from inside the tunnel of the Trishuli 3A hydel project
— ANI (@ANI) September 4, 2026
Video source: Secretariat of the Ministry of Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation, Govt of Nepal pic.twitter.com/tNZTMoWgIp
Rescue progress
Response was received from inside: Rescuer
Rastriya Swatantra Party lawmaker Shri Ram Neupane, also an engineer who has been involved in the rescue operation from the beginning, announced that more voices were heard from inside the tunnel.
He said, "When the rescue team said, 'Don't panic, we are rescuing you,' a response was received from inside."
Most of the projects were destroyed when the collapse of a melting glacier on the Nepal-China border triggered a wave of water, debris, and sludge to flood the river valley.
Rescue challenges
Rescue operations ongoing
Rescue attempts have increasingly shifted to the hydropower tunnels, where authorities estimate workers may have lived for almost a week because of air pockets.
So far, almost 270 individuals have been rescued from hydropower projects.
At the Rasuwa Langtang Khola Hydropower Project, a Nepal Army search-and-rescue team discovered the bodies of two people inside the tunnel after advancing around 150 meters into the passsage.
Family concerns
Families of workers anxiously waiting for updates
The families of the workers have been anxiously waiting for updates. Relatives have been visiting government offices and Army Headquarters, hoping to hear news about their loved ones.
The death toll in Nepal has reached 1,259, with 5,053 people still unaccounted for as rescue operations continue.
BBC reported that engineers have been pumping air into the tunnels as part of the huge rescue operation.