Nepali army breaks through hydropower tunnel to reach trapped workers after glacial flood

Nepali army rescuers broke through to a hydropower tunnel on Saturday and began pumping air and sending a camera inside, raising hopes of reaching workers trapped since devastating floods struck the site three days earlier.

Nepal’s government says more than 100 workers may still be alive and trapped inside tunnels at hydropower projects, with rescue efforts focused on the Trishuli 3A and 3B sites.

Those trapped are among 933 hydropower workers missing since a wall of mud and debris swept down on Wednesday morning, according to the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority.

The US Geological Survey said the disaster on the China-Nepal border was caused by a glacial collapse, with nearly 3,000 people missing and 682 confirmed dead.

At Trishuli 3A, army rescue teams using drills broke through on Saturday evening into the upper part of a mud-swamped tunnel.

“We have already started sending air through the small opening, and we will now begin excavation work and send the rescue team inside,” Nepali Home Minister Sudan Gurung said in a statement.