Nepali Army widens Upper Trishuli tunnel to reach 42 trapped workers

Nuwakot,UPDATED: Aug 30, 2026 19:42 IST

Nepali Army engineers on Sunday stepped up efforts to reach people believed to be trapped inside the tunnel of the Upper Trishuli-3A hydropower project, using heavy equipment and controlled blasting to widen an opening into the buried structure. The operation is focused on 42 people reported to be out of contact at the 60 MW project, even as 537 workers and employees remain unaccounted for across nine hydropower projects in flood-hit areas of Nepal.

The rescue effort has drawn support from multiple agencies and international teams as authorities deal with mud, debris, damaged infrastructure and difficult terrain after the August 26 floods. Indian and Chinese experts have also been deployed to help search and rescue operations at affected hydropower sites.

According to the Independent Power Producers' Association, Nepal (IPPAN), the tunnel at Upper Trishuli-3A in Nuwakot is one of the key sites where people are feared trapped. The Nepal Electricity Authority has separately estimated that around 42 technical personnel were carrying out an overhaul of the underground powerhouse when they became trapped inside the tunnel, OnlineKhabar reported.

An update from the Nepal Prime Minister's Office said a joint 90-member rescue team has been deployed at the site. It includes 66 Nepali Army personnel, among them a special search and rescue team with trained dogs, 18 Armed Police Force personnel and six Nepal Police personnel. The team reached the main section of the tunnel, known as the crown head, at around 2 pm and created a 2-by-3-foot opening. Rescuers then went down through the opening using ropes and called out to those inside, but received no response, the PMO said.

The PMO said rescue work was continuing with heavy equipment and blasting while the opening was being widened to make the operation faster and more effective. "Despite the difficult and risky conditions, the rescue team is working tirelessly around the clock," it said. The Nepali Army has also airlifted excavators and bulldozers to Battar in Nuwakot after dismantling the machinery into sections for helicopter transport, according to the Nepal News web portal.

Ratopati reported that the tunnel mouth was later located about 40 metres upstream from the vertical hole and about eight metres below it. However, rescuers have not yet reached the workers believed to be trapped inside.

Across nine hydropower projects in Rasuwa and Nuwakot, 537 workers and employees remain unaccounted for, according to IPPAN data cited by local media. IPPAN said 898 workers and employees at the nine projects were initially reported out of contact after the floods, and 361 of them have since been rescued. The 216 MW Upper Trishuli-1 project in Rasuwa has the highest number of missing workers, with around 300 still believed to be trapped inside the tunnel. At the 22 MW Chilime Hydropower Project, IPPAN said eight people remained unaccounted for, while project officials said six employees were believed to be trapped inside a tunnel.

assistance has also been deployed. The Indian Embassy in Kathmandu said an 11-member Indian technical team of doctors, paramedics and tunnel engineers carried out reconnaissance of hydropower tunnels in the flood-affected areas. The team arrived in Kathmandu on Friday and was flown to Chilime and Langtang in coordination with the Nepali Army and the Armed Police Force, the Kathmandu Post reported. Indian Ambassador Naveen Srivastava said the Indian experts conducted reconnaissance of tunnels in the Chilime and Langtang power plant areas along with the Nepali Army. OnlineKhabar reported on Sunday that the Indian technical and tunnel rescue team had reached Chilime to begin search and rescue operations. A separate 22-member Indian Army team was also deployed to support the operation, it said.

A six-member Chinese tunnel expert team has also arrived in Nepal to assist with the rescue effort. The Himalayan Times reported that the Chinese experts had reached the Trishuli area by helicopter and were coordinating with a Nepali Army technical team to assess the tunnel at Upper Trishuli-3B and determine whether rescue operations were feasible there. Overall, rescue operations continue at multiple sites as authorities try to reach people trapped by flood-hit tunnels and blocked access routes.

With PTI Inputs

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