Nepal experienced remarkable rescue operations as a Chinese man and a woman were saved separately on Saturday, ten days after severe floods ravaged the nation. The man was rescued from a hydropower tunnel, marking the third successful rescue at the Trishuli hydropower project. Previously, two Nepalese workers were also rescued from the same location.
A joint rescue team consisting of Nepalese military personnel and South Korean disaster experts successfully extracted the man from a 225-meter tunnel. Following the rescue, the man underwent a health evaluation and was later airlifted to safety. Images captured the man being evacuated via helicopter, with an army medic attending to him during the flight. A photo released by Chinese state broadcaster CCTV depicted the man being carried out of the tunnel by two rescuers.
The rescued man shared his experience with an officer, expressing his disbelief and gratitude when he saw the rescue crew’s lights approaching. He was then transported to a hospital and reported to be in stable condition, as confirmed by CCTV reports.
Rescue efforts have intensified around 12 hydropower projects in Nepal, with approximately 900 workers still missing and an estimated 500 individuals believed to be trapped in various tunnels. International rescue teams from India, China, South Korea, and the United States have been diligently combing through debris, damaged structures, and tunnels at these sites in the hopes of finding more survivors.
In another heartening development, a woman was successfully rescued from a house in flood-hit Nuwakot town. The woman, covered in mud, was found inside the damaged house by rescue teams who provided her with water before safely extracting her. She was then airlifted to Kathmandu for further medical treatment.
The devastating floods that struck on August 26, likely triggered by a glacier collapse, have claimed at least 1,300 lives. Nepal’s disaster management agency reports that over 5,000 individuals are still missing since the calamity.