Beneath the mountains of Nepal, where glaciers meet the sky and rivers carry the weight of entire economies, a catastrophic collapse has buried hundreds of workers inside the tunnels they helped build. A glacier on the Nepal-Tibet border gave way without warning, sending walls of water and debris racing through valleys at speeds that erased villages, bridges, and nearly a decade of infrastructure investment in moments. More than a week later, officials hold to the belief that dozens remain alive in underground chambers — sustained by air pockets, stored provisions, and the fragile arithmetic o
Nepal officials express confidence trapped hydropower workers still alive after week
At least 1,252 people confirmed dead, 4,200 missing, and 639 workers trapped in hydropower tunnels across multiple sites following catastrophic floods.
Our relatives are sitting inside a dark tunnel. How long can they possibly survive?
Mark
So officials are saying these 46 people have been alive for a week in a sealed chamber. What's the basis for that confidence?
Mimi
They're pointing to two things: air pockets inside the tunnel, and the fact that the workers had food and water stored there. It's not certain—they haven't reached them yet—but it's plausible.
Luke
Right, but "confident" is doing a lot of work there. They haven't actually seen these people. They're inferring from conditions that survivors *could* last a week. That's different from knowing they have.
Mark
What about the other sites? Are conditions similar?
Mimi
Upper Trishuli 3A is similar—they believe 30 to 40 people are trapped there in a dry space. But it took six days just to find the tunnel through the mud. Rasuwagadhi is the only one where they can actually walk through and search.
Luke
So at Trishuli, they still haven't confirmed anyone is alive there either. They're working on assumptions about what "dry space" means.
Mark
The families seem angry about the lack of information. Is that justified?
Mimi
They've been waiting eight days with almost nothing. No confirmation of who's alive, no timeline, no real updates. They're moving between government offices getting nowhere.
Luke
The authorities are clearly stretched thin—they're coordinating international rescue teams, managing a disaster that killed over 1,200 people. But that doesn't mean the families' frustration isn't real. There's a real gap between what officials know and what they're telling people.
Mark
How much of Nepal's power infrastructure was actually destroyed?
Mimi
About 10 percent of total generation capacity. Eleven plants damaged or destroyed. That's significant for a country that's invested nine billion dollars in hydropower.
Luke
And that's just the immediate infrastructure loss. The broader economic hit—rebuilding 20,000 houses, five billion in recovery costs—that's the real weight of this.
Mark
Do we know how long the rescue operation will take?
Mimi
Officials say they'll keep searching as long as there's hope. But they're also preparing to recover bodies. It's not clear how long they can sustain the effort.
Luke
That's the hard truth underneath all this. At some point, the search becomes recovery. And no one wants to say when that moment comes.
Der Puls
- A glacier collapse on the Nepal-Tibet border unleashed 100mph floodwaters that traveled over 60 miles, killing at least 1,252 people and leaving more than 4,200 missing across the region.
- At least 639 hydropower workers remain unaccounted for across multiple sites, with 46 believed alive in an underground chamber at Rasuwagadhi and up to 40 more potentially surviving in the tunnels of Upper Trishuli 3A.
- Rescue teams spent nearly six days just locating the buried tunnel entrances through thick mud, and the most devastated sites remain reachable only by helicopter, slowing every attempt to break through.
- International teams from India, China, South Korea, and Australia have joined Nepali forces using excavators and heavy equipment, but families report being kept in the dark — cycling through ministries and disaster offices without receiving word on whether their relatives are alive.
- The disaster has knocked out roughly 10 percent of Nepal's electricity capacity, destroyed or damaged 11 hydropower plants, and left a recovery bill estimated at over five billion dollars, with the country still counting its dead.
Beneath the mountains of Nepal, where glaciers meet the sky and rivers carry the weight of entire economies, a catastrophic collapse has buried hundreds of workers inside the tunnels they helped build. A glacier on the Nepal-Tibet border gave way without warning, sending walls of water and debris racing through valleys at speeds that erased villages, bridges, and nearly a decade of infrastructure investment in moments. More than a week later, officials hold to the belief that dozens remain alive in underground chambers — sustained by air pockets, stored provisions, and the fragile arithmetic of hope — while families circle government offices in search of answers that have not come.
A week after catastrophic floodwaters tore through Nepal's mountain valleys, officials say they remain confident that 46 workers are still alive inside an underground chamber at the Rasuwagadhi hydropower plant. The workers are believed to have access to food, water, and trapped air — thin provisions against the darkness, but enough to sustain hope. Rescue teams are using excavators and heavy equipment to reach them, and the army has attempted to walk the tunnel itself, so far without locating the room where survivors are thought to be sheltering.
The disaster began when a glacier on the Nepal-Tibet border collapsed, sending a surge of water, mud, and debris racing more than 60 miles down river valleys at speeds approaching 100 miles per hour. The floods obliterated villages, bridges, and the hydropower infrastructure Nepal had spent over nine billion dollars constructing across its mountains. At least 1,252 people have been confirmed dead, more than 4,200 remain missing, and 639 workers are still unaccounted for at hydropower facilities along the Bhote Koshi and Trishuli rivers. The United Nations estimates the floods generated at least 2.2 million tonnes of debris now choking the landscape.
At Upper Trishuli 3A, where between 30 and 40 people are believed trapped, rescue workers needed nearly six days simply to locate the tunnel entrances beneath the mud. Army spokesperson Raja Ram Basnet said teams were pressing forward on the belief that a dry space exists inside. The most devastated sites remain accessible only by helicopter, and Nepal has called on rescue expertise from India, China, South Korea, and Australia to accelerate operations.
For the families waiting outside, the silence from authorities has become its own kind of suffering. Durga Gurung, whose brother is among those trapped, said neither the army nor the electricity authority had told families whether their relatives were alive. Laxmi Adhikari has spent eight days moving between government ministries searching for news of her brother, who had gone to Trishuli 3A to test machinery when the waters came. She accused officials of withholding information and moving too slowly — a charge that echoes across the families gathered at the edges of the rescue zone.
Beyond the tunnels, the scale of destruction is staggering. Eleven hydropower plants were destroyed or severely damaged, eliminating roughly 10 percent of Nepal's electricity-generation capacity. More than 20,000 homes will need to be rebuilt. The government estimates recovery will cost over five billion dollars. Nepal is still counting its dead, still breaking through mud toward chambers where, officials insist, people are waiting to be found.
A week underground in darkness, with water still dripping somewhere in the distance. That is where officials believe 46 workers remain alive inside the Rasuwagadhi hydropower plant, buried in an underground chamber after a catastrophic flood tore through Nepal's mountain valleys. The workers have food and water, authorities say. They have air. They have hope, though hope is a thin thing when you cannot see the sun.
The disaster began when a glacier collapsed on the border between Nepal and China-controlled Tibet, sending a surge of water, debris, and mud racing down the river valley at speeds reaching 100 miles per hour. The wall of water traveled more than 60 miles, obliterating villages, bridges, and the hydropower installations that Nepal had spent more than nine billion dollars building across its mountains. At least 1,252 people have been confirmed dead. More than 4,200 remain missing. The United Nations Development Programme estimates the floods created at least 2.2 million tonnes of debris—building fragments, boulders, sediment—that now chokes the landscape.
Among the hardest hit were the hydropower plants themselves. Large boulders and floodwaters deluged the tunnels where workers had been stationed, blocking entrances and burying some structures deep in mud. At least 639 workers are still missing from hydropower facilities along the Bhote Koshi and Triushuli rivers. But in the tunnels of Rasuwagadhi and Upper Trishuli 3A, officials believe survivors may have endured because of air pockets trapped inside. So far, more than 270 people have been rescued from the hydropower projects.
Amhsu Kiran Shahi, a board member of the Nepal electricity authority, told Reuters on Wednesday that officials were "very confident" the 46 people in Rasuwagadhi's underground chamber were still alive. "They have food and water over there in the building," he said. Rescue teams are using excavators and heavy equipment to reach them. At Upper Trishuli 3A, where 30 to 40 people are believed trapped, it took rescue workers almost six days just to locate the tunnels through the thick mud. "We are expecting survivors in there because we are told there is a dry space inside," said Nepali army spokesperson Raja Ram Basnet. "We are trying to break into the tunnel now."
The Rasuwagadhi plant sits in Rasuwa district, about three miles from the Tibetan border, in one of the areas most devastated by the floods. The region remains almost inaccessible except by helicopter. "This is the only project where it's possible to walk through the tunnel," Shahi said. "The army tried doing that three days ago, but they didn't find the room. We are going in again." The army has mobilized every technology available in Nepal and is receiving assistance from India, China, South Korea, and Australia. The search will continue as long as there is hope for survivors, officials said, though recovery of bodies will proceed in parallel.
But for the families waiting outside, hope is shadowed by frustration and silence. Durga Gurung's brother, Jhappad Bhujel, is among those trapped. "Right now, we are just relying on God," Gurung told the Guardian. "We have not been given any information about whether the people inside are alive or not. Neither the army nor the people from the electricity authority are telling us anything. So many days have passed that we have reached a point where it feels like all we can do is hope for a miracle." He asked the question that haunts every family: "Our relatives are sitting inside a dark tunnel. How long can they possibly survive?"
Laxmi Adhikari's brother, Jeevanlal Adhikari, had gone to Trishuli 3A to test machines when the floods struck. She has spent eight days moving between government offices, ministry to ministry, disaster management authority to authority, searching for answers. "We have been running from one ministry to another," she said, "trying to find my brother." She accused authorities of withholding information and moving too slowly. "When the water came rushing in, where did he go? Did he manage to get to safety? They haven't even given us definite information about whether our people are alive or not."
The scale of the disaster extends far beyond the trapped workers. The floods destroyed or severely damaged 11 hydropower plants and knocked out roughly 10 percent of Nepal's total electricity-generation capacity. More than 20,000 houses will need to be rebuilt. Nepal has estimated the total cost of recovery at more than five billion dollars. The country is still counting the dead, still searching the tunnels, still waiting for word from the darkness.
Bemerkenswerte Zitate
We are very confident that they must be alive after one week because they have food and water over there in the building.— Amhsu Kiran Shahi, board member of Nepal electricity authority
Right now, we are just relying on God. We have not been given any information about whether the people inside are alive or not.— Durga Gurung, whose brother is trapped in a hydropower tunnel
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Climate & Environment