Nepal floods: workers found alive underground after 9 days as rescue continues

Rescuers in Nepal have pulled two workers alive from a hydropower tunnel nine days after catastrophic floods swept through the Himalayan region.

Search teams heard voices inside the tunnel at the Trishuli 3A hydropower plant on Friday morning, helping them locate the workers, Nepalese lawmaker Shri Ram Neupane said.

One survivor told authorities that more people remained alive inside, according to army spokesperson Brig. Gen. Raja Ram Basnet. Rescue operations are continuing.

“I can’t explain what we are feeling at the moment. We are just grateful to god,” Amir Maharjan, the brother of one rescued worker, told The Associated Press.

Both men, identified as a mechanical foreman and mechanical supervisor, were flown to hospital in Kathmandu with one in critical condition, according to the prime minister's office.

About 115 people are believed to remain trapped in the Trishuli 3A tunnel, according to the Independent Power Producers Association of Nepal.

Across 12 hydropower projects, about 900 workers remain missing, with around 500 believed to be trapped underground.

At least 1,287 people were killed in the August 26 floods, which were likely triggered by a glacier collapse. More than 5,000 people remain missing, according to Nepal's disaster management agency.