In a breakthrough late Saturday, the Nepali army was able to insert a pipe into a tunnel at the Trishuli 3A hydroelectric site where workers are believed to be trapped.
“We have already started sending air through the small opening, and we will now begin excavation work and send the rescue team inside,” Home Minister Sudan Gurung said in a statement.
More than 100 workers may still be alive and trapped inside such tunnels, with rescue efforts focused on the Trishuli 3A and 3B sites.
HUGE GAP BETWEEN MISSING AND DEAD REFLECTS CHALLENGES RESCUERS FACE
The huge gap between the death toll and the number of people missing highlights the immense challenge facing rescuers as they push deeper into the devastated border area.
Gyirong Port lies deep in the Himalayas along China’s border with Nepal, and roads and communications at the port remain cut off.
Speaking to CNA, Colin Stark, a landslide expert and professor in the Department of Civil Engineering at National Taiwan University, said the true toll could take time to establish.
Stark said the immense amount of debris carried by the flood was likely to have buried many victims, while floodwaters and debris could also have carried casualties kilometres downstream.
“For these reasons, the number of missing is far, far higher than the number of confirmed fatalities,” he said.
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