Hope is hard to keep alive in total darkness for over a week. Yet, beneath the mud and debris of Nepal's devastated landscape, two men managed to survive nine grueling days trapped inside a sealed hydropower tunnel.
When flash floods triggered by the Bhotekoshi River slammed into Rasuwa on August 26, they sealed the underground infrastructure of the Trishuli 3A hydel project. Most people assumed the worst. With death tolls climbing past twelve hundred across the nation, an underground tomb seemed the likely fate for anyone caught inside.
Then came the breakthrough. Rescue workers established direct voice contact with survivors, pulling two men out alive and hearing echoes of more people waiting in the dark.
Surviving Nine Days Underground
The reality of what these workers endured is staggering. Sanjay Sah, a 30-year-old mechanical foreman employed by the Nepal Electricity Authority, was stationed in the control room when the disaster struck. Realizing the danger, he tried to warn others to flee. By the time he turned to save himself, the escape route was blocked.
He spent the next nine days wrapped in pitch blackness, sustained only by sheer willpower and his faith, continuously chanting mantras while waiting for a rescue crew that he hoped would come.
Alongside him, 45-year-old mechanical supervisor Kabir Maharjan also survived the ordeal. Joint teams from the Nepali Army and the Armed Police Force breached the blocked tunnel system, utilizing specialized equipment to locate and extract the men. Visuals from the site showed Sah covered in thick mud, carried out on a rescuer's shoulder, while Maharjan was quickly airlifted to a hospital in Kathmandu for urgent medical evaluation.
Why the Trishuli 3A Rescue Operation is Unprecedented
Tunnel rescues following major hydrological disasters are notoriously complex. When a glacier collapse or flash flood seals an underground facility, water isn't the only hazard. Air pockets shrink, structural integrity fails, and massive amounts of sediment plug every exit point.
The Independent Power Producers Association of Nepal estimates that hundreds of workers remain missing across multiple hydropower sites hit by the catastrophe. Out of those, roughly 115 individuals were believed to be trapped inside the main Trishuli 3A tunnel alone.
Finding survivors after more than a week defies standard survival timelines. Dehydration usually sets in within days, making this rescue a statistical anomaly and a testament to human resilience. When rescue personnel shouted into the cavity and heard a clear "Yes" in response, the entire dynamic of the operation shifted from recovery to active rescue.
The Road Ahead for Hydropower Safety in Nepal
This disaster exposes harsh vulnerabilities in mountain infrastructure. Sudden glacial outbursts leave little to no warning time for workers stationed in remote river valleys.
Engineers and disaster response units are now re-evaluating how quickly communication lines can be established inside compromised tunnels. Traditional heavy machinery takes days just to clear the exterior mouths of these corridors, leaving trapped workers entirely isolated.
Families of the missing continue to wait near the project sites, clinging to the slim chance that other pockets of air may have kept more workers alive. Teams are pushing deeper into the long, winding passages of the powerhouse, listening closely for any sound against the backdrop of the rubble.
The focus remains entirely on clearing the remaining blockages and getting every last survivor out into the open air.
