Two men trapped inside a hydropower project tunnel in Nepal's Trishuli were pulled out alive on Thursday, nine days after a devastating flash flood tore through the region, raising hopes that others may still be found alive amid an ongoing search for hundreds still missing.
Local television channels aired images of mud-covered workers being carried out on rescuers' shoulders from the Trishuli 3A Hydropower Project.
The rescued men were identified as Kabir Maharajan, a supervisor at the project, and Sanjay Shah, a mechanical foreman with the Nepal Electricity Authority, NDTV reported.
Nepali lawmaker Sri Ram Neupane shared images from the operation on Facebook shortly after army spokesperson Brigadier General Raja Ram Basnet confirmed the rescues.
The flood struck on August 26, and is believed to have been triggered by a glacier collapse that devastated towns and valleys across Nepal.
According to local authorities, about 900 workers remain missing from 12 hydropower projects in the country, with roughly 500 believed still trapped inside various tunnels.
Rescue operations are continuing at half a dozen other tunnel sites where more than 150 people are feared trapped, with engineers pumping air into the tunnels to sustain anyone who may still be alive inside.
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Local reports claimed that voices of additional survivors had been heard from within the Trishuli 3A tunnel as rescue efforts continued, though this could not be independently verified.
Nepal's disaster management agency has said at least 1,259 people were killed in the floods, with more than 5,000 still unaccounted for nationwide.
China reported separately that, as of late Wednesday, 21 people had been killed and 541 remained missing on the Tibetan side of the border, where the same weather system caused extensive damage.
The Thursday rescue marks a rare positive development in a search operation that has stretched over more than a week, with authorities continuing efforts to reach dozens of hydropower tunnels buried under debris across the flood-affected region.
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