Over 900 Workers Trapped in Nepal Hydropower Tunnels Following Avalanche

MUMBAI, India – As authorities in Nepal scramble to rescue more than 900 workers trapped in hydropower tunnels that are still under construction, a top group of the country's private sector power producers has criticized the government's initial hesitance in accepting help from other countries.

The floods and mudslides that were triggered by last week's ice-and-rock avalanche have buried several Himalayan villages in the border region of Nepal and Tibet.

In a statement on Monday morning local time, Nepal's disaster management department said 903 people have died and 4,247 are currently considered missing, a sharp rise on the previous figures. At least 85 of those missing are Americans, the State Department said on Sunday.

The debris created by the various landslides have also blocked nine hydropower tunnels in Nepal's Rasuwa and Nuwakot districts, trapping 933 workers from Nepal, South Korea and China. Videos shared by the Nepali army show rescue personnel using drills and excavator machines to try and rescue those who were trapped.

Bhim Gautam, chief executive officer of the Independent Power Producers Association of Nepal, told NPR that Nepal does not have "enough technology, equipment and expertise" to mount successful rescue operations at hydropower projects. "Our expertise is only in dealing with small flooding. We have never faced a situation like this before," said Gautam.

Last week's floods, he said, not only blocked the entrances of the tunnels, but also made them difficult to locate. "In some cases, the rescue workers spent three days only in finding these tunnels."

He said his industry's leaders had to "pressure the government" to allow rescue workers from other countries. "Late last week, the government approved rescue teams from China, India and Australia to come," Gautam said. "But it is so late now."

Nepal's finance minister Swarnim Wagle had last week rejected reports in local and international media that asserted the country had rejected help from foreign countries, insisting that assistance had been accepted only "according to the needs on the ground."

In a statement posted to Facebook Sunday, prime minister Balen Shah said the Nepali army and police, along with experts from India, China and South Korea, were now carrying out rescue operations at various hydropower tunnels. The Nepali government has been contacted for comment.

Fatality figures in China under question

Meanwhile in China on Monday, the country's foreign ministry denied reports that officials in Beijing had ignored early warning signs of the disaster or downplayed the details of casualties.

It insisted that the country's release of information about the floods and mudslide near its border with Nepal had been transparent and timely.