Two Workers Rescued from Hydropower Tunnel in Nepal After Nine Days of Flood Tragedy

Rescue After Nine Days

On September 4, 2026, rescue teams pulled two men alive from a collapsed tunnel at the Upper Trishuli 3A hydropower station, nine days after the Bhotekoshi flash floods devastated the region on August 26.

Identified Survivors

The rescued men were identified as Sanjay Sah, a mechanical foreman aged 30, and Kabir Maharjan, a 45‑year‑old mechanical supervisor.

Operation Details

The search was led by a Nepal Army‑led security command that employed specialised rescue equipment. During the operation, some reports noted that voices were heard inside the tunnel, leading rescuers to believe additional survivors might still be trapped.

Other accounts do not mention audible voices, reflecting the difficulty of confirming conditions inside the collapsed infrastructure.

Flood Context

The August 26 disaster began with an ice‑rock avalanche near the Nepal‑Tibet border that triggered the Bhotekoshi River to surge. The flash floods swept across the Trishuli Valley, killing more than 1,200 people and leaving tens of thousands displaced.

At the time of the rescue, the death toll had risen to 1,282, with bodies recovered in Chitwan, Nawalparasi East and West, Nuwakot, Gorkha, Dhading, Rasuwa and Tanahu.

Aftermath and Further Efforts

The retrieval of the two men offers a glimmer of hope amid the ongoing search for other missing workers, while authorities continue to assess remaining sections of the tunnel for safety and potential survivors.