Nepal Rescuers Drill Through Tunnels to Reach Nearly 900 Workers Missing After Floods
In Nepal, army-led rescue teams are boring through tunnels to try to reach roughly 900 workers missing after severe flooding, having made contact with trapped workers more than a day after the flood struck.
A large-scale rescue operation is underway in Nepal after flooding left more than 900 workers unaccounted for. The workers had been employed at a site involving tunnel construction, and the flooding caused significant damage, trapping many people underground.
The Nepal Army is leading the rescue effort, supported by industry groups and private rescue teams. According to these parties, army personnel have been drilling through collapsed or blocked sections of the tunnels in an effort to reach the trapped workers.
Delayed contact
Army officials, industry groups and private rescuers say that contact with the trapped workers was only established more than a full day after the flood occurred. The delay underscores how difficult and slow the rescue effort has been, as teams worked their way through damaged tunnel structures.
It remains publicly unclear exactly how many workers have survived or how many are still trapped. The rescue operation is continuing, and those involved have indicated that further information will be provided as it becomes available.
The incident has drawn attention to the risks associated with infrastructure construction in regions prone to sudden and severe flooding. Nepal is among the countries where hydropower projects are often built in mountainous terrain that is vulnerable to natural disasters.
