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According to The Kathmandu Post, the families are continuously demanding the authorities to speed up the rescue operation. One of these families is Sita Pandey, whose husband Jiblal Adhikari is feared to be trapped in the underground powerhouse of Upper Trishuli-3A Hydropower Project. He had talked to his wife before going to the plant around 7 am on Wednesday morning. After this they lost contact.

Tension increasing with every passing hour

According to Sita, the mobile network inside the plant did not work, so her husband usually talked online during lunch time, but there was no news from him since the floods on Wednesday. Sita is still hopeful that her husband will be alive, because there is an oxygen system in the underground plant. However, their worries are increasing with each passing hour.

Sudden flood in Bhote Koshi river caused devastation

1. The sudden flood in Bhote Koshi river has caused destruction on a large scale. It is said that after the avalanche caused by rock and ice debris, the water level of the river suddenly increased and caused huge damage to the surrounding areas and hydropower projects.
2. According to data from Nepal’s Electricity Authority and the Association of Independent Power Producers, about 897 people are still out of contact despite being connected to hydropower projects. However, it is not clear how many of these people are trapped inside the tunnels and how many have been hit by floods or landslides.
3. At the time of the accident in Upper Trishuli-3A project, about 30 to 40 people were working in the underground powerhouse. Apart from the engineers and technical staff of Nepal Electricity Authority, experts from other projects were also included. This 60 MW project has been producing electricity since 2019 and regular maintenance work was going on at the time of the accident.
4. There is resentment among the families over the delay in the rescue operation. He says that Nepal does not have enough experience and equipment for rescue operations in such complex and water-filled underground tunnels. The families allege that the help of international experts should have been sought earlier.
5. On Saturday, at the request of Nepal, China sent nine expert tunnel rescue workers. Along with this, the work of pumping oxygen to supply air inside the tunnel was also started.
6. The rescue team is trying to reach the main tunnel. For this, drilling was done till the upper part of the tunnel i.e. ‘crown’. On Sunday, Nepali Army said that after three days of continuous efforts the team was successful in reaching the upper part of the tunnel.
7. According to the Army, during drilling, water was also found inside the tunnel with a diameter of about 7 meters. After this the rescue workers tried to go inside through the path created. However, despite calling from inside, he did not get any response. This further increased the anxiety of the families waiting outside.
8. Now big equipment is being brought to the spot and preparations are being made to widen the tunnel path further. If necessary, preparations are also being made to open the road quickly by using explosive technology.
9. Officials say the underground powerhouse is built in several levels and there is likely access to oxygen and water. Because of this, the rescue team is hopeful that the people trapped inside may still be alive. However, the actual situation inside the tunnel is not yet known.
10. On the other hand, people are also missing from many other hydropower projects of Nepal. Most people are reported missing from Upper Trishuli-1 project, where 576 people have not been contacted.
11. According to the Energy Ministry of Nepal, 361 people have been rescued from various hydropower projects. According to Nepal Electricity Authority, 265 of its employees are still out of contact in four projects. These include Chilime, Rasuwagadhi, Trishuli-3A and Trishuli-3B.
12. Amidst the rescue operation, the biggest demand of the families is that the operation should be carried forward as soon as possible. They admit that the situation inside the tunnel is very difficult and the safety of the rescue workers is also important, but every passing moment is very important for them.

Sita Pandey and the rest of the family are now waiting for some good news from the tunnel. They hope that the rescue team will be able to reach the underground powerhouse and find out what happened to the people trapped inside.