Hundreds feared stuck in hydropower tunnels

Rescuers raced yesterday to free hundreds of workers believed to be trapped in tunnels at hydropower sites that were buried in mud by catastrophic flooding on the Nepal-China border as the death toll climbed and increasingly desperate families searched for missing loved ones.

The combined deaths in Nepal and China surpassed 950, with more than 4,400 people missing. A private-sector association representing power companies said at least 900 workers were unaccounted for at 12 hydropower projects damaged by the flash floods in Nepal’s Rasuwa and Nuwakot districts.

About 500 of those workers were believed to be trapped in tunnels. At least one expert said that some workers could have access to oxygen, but others warned that the chances of finding survivors were diminishing. As the rescue efforts intensified, four bodies were recovered from three mud-filled tunnels, Nepal’s army said.

Some workers managed to call for help when the disaster struck last Wednesday, and others who managed to flee reported to authorities and relatives that many of their colleagues were still in the tunnels, said Mohan Kumar Dangi, president of the Independent Power Producers’ Association, Nepal, or IPPAN.

It was unclear whether rescuers have had any contact with the trapped workers since the initial calls for help.

Six days after the disaster, fears were growing that some might have suffocated, Dangi said.

Rescue efforts were focused on people trapped in the gigantic tunnels built for controlling the flow of water.

“These tunnels are big enough to drive trucks through,” said Jakob Steiner, a geoscientist at the University of Graz in Austria based in Dhaka, Bangladesh. “And from what we understand, they have managed to get oxygen to some of those stuck inside and are trying to rescue them now. It’s a race for time, though, as people need food and water.”

In the Upper Trishuli-1 Hydropower Project, in the hard-hit Rasuwa district, at least 576 people were missing, Dangi said, adding that around 300 of them were believed to be trapped inside the project’s tunnel.

At the Trishuli-3 Hydropower Project, crews were working to descend about 15 metres (50 feet) into a tunnel in an effort to reach those believed trapped inside, according to Raja Ram Basnet, Nepal’s army spokesman.

Workers shovelling mud from a flood-ravaged power station in Dhading, Nepal, told The Associated Press that the station is a key connection for providing power to over 20,000 people in the region.

On the Chinese side, rescue and recovery efforts included rebuilding the road leading to the Gyirong Port border crossing that regulated travel between China and Nepal.

Trucks carried giant rocks as workers tried to repave a portion of the road, state broadcaster CCTV showed, next to rapidly rushing waters, which have been made more powerful by days of rain. The road is now under two to three metres (6.6 to 9.8 feet) of water. The repaving effort was just a little over a kilometre (0.62 miles) from the border, CCTV said.

Although some rescue teams have managed to reach the border, that represented only a portion of the force.

Chinese state media coverage has focused largely on the official response, highlighting the deployment of firefighters, the People’s Liberation Army and instructions from top leaders. Little is known about victims on the Chinese side.

Nepal’s disaster agency said yesterday that 939 deaths had been counted in that country, with 3,925 people missing, including 592 foreigners. As of Sunday, Chinese authorities reported 16 deaths and 546 missing. Chinese state media said 261 of the missing were foreigners, including over 100 Nepalis.