Nepal Floods: Four Survivors Rescued From Mud, Debris And Collapsed Structures

Rescue teams in Nepal pulled four people alive from mud, debris and collapsed structures in recent days, including a Chinese worker trapped inside a hydropower tunnel and a 64-year-old woman buried in a damaged house, offering rare signs of hope after one of the country’s deadliest disasters.

Chinese Worker Rescued From Hydropower Tunnel

The latest rescue involved Chinese national Luhaitao, who was found alive inside a 225-metre-long tunnel linked to a hydropower project.

Nepal’s Army said the operation was jointly carried out by Nepali military personnel and disaster response specialists from South Korea. The worker was rescued from the tunnel and taken for medical evaluation.

Images released by the Army showed Luhaitao being airlifted by helicopter, with a military medic attending to him. He was also photographed being helped out by two rescuers, with thick mud covering his hands.

The rescue was the third at the Trishuli hydropower site after two Nepali workers were brought out alive from a tunnel at the Trishuli 3A hydropower plant on Friday.

64-Year-Old Woman Pulled From Damaged Home

In Nuwakot town, rescuers also found 64-year-old Chandika Shrestha alive inside a damaged house.

Officials said Shrestha was being airlifted to Kathmandu for medical treatment. Photographs showed emergency workers carrying her out of the building wrapped in a grey blanket.

The rescues have raised the total number of survivors found alive in recent days to four, despite the extensive destruction caused by the floods.

Hundreds Feared Trapped In Hydropower Tunnels

Authorities said nearly 900 workers remain missing across 12 hydropower projects, with around 500 believed to be trapped inside tunnels.

Rescue teams from India, China, Australia and South Korea have joined Nepali personnel in searching for survivors trapped inside blocked tunnels across the disaster-hit region.

The floods struck on August 26 and are believed to have been triggered by a glacier collapse. At least 1,300 people have been killed, while more than 5,000 remain missing, according to Nepal’s disaster management agency.

Nepal Police said 1,030 bodies have been buried in mass graves after DNA samples were collected to allow relatives to identify victims at a later stage.

Shah Promises Safe Housing For Displaced Families

Prime Minister Balendra Shah has pledged to provide “safe and comfortable accommodation” for thousands of people displaced by the disaster and currently living in temporary relief camps.

“We know that staying there is not easy for you,” Shah said in a social media post on Friday.

He assured survivors that the government would support them in rebuilding their lives and work to create conditions in which they could once again plan and build their futures.