Deep beneath the Himalayas in Nepal, rescue teams continue efforts to locate six men missing after a devastating flood inundated the underground Chilime hydropower facility. The workers were trapped when a sudden surge of water, silt, and rock swept into the powerhouse’s tunnels, part of a larger disaster that has claimed at least 1,385 lives and left more than 5,000 people missing across Nepal and neighboring Tibet.
The disaster, triggered by the collapse of a glacial mass and accompanying bedrock from the slopes above, destroyed 14 hydropower projects, including the Chilime facility. Approximately 900 hydropower personnel are dead or unaccounted for, and the flood has wiped out about 10 percent of Nepal’s electricity generation capacity, a major blow to a country heavily reliant on hydropower both domestically and as an export.
The Chilime project’s underground powerhouse spans five floors and is accessed by an 820-foot tunnel. Floodwaters rapidly filled the tunnel, forcing rescue workers into painstaking manual excavation through thick silt and debris. Heavy machinery was unable to reach the site initially due to destroyed roads and bridges, delaying more efficient recovery operations until 17 days after the flood struck.
On Friday, after clearing a critical access route, machinery was finally brought in, though operations have faced setbacks, including a wheel loader accident and flat tires. Rescue teams—a mix of Nepali and Indian soldiers, experienced mountaineers, engineers from Australia, and local volunteers, many grieving family losses—are working around the clock. Resources remain limited, and the area remains vulnerable to further flooding.
A hopeful development emerged late last week when soldiers investigating about 350 feet into the tunnel detected a small but significant pocket of air. They felt a cool breeze and heard echoes, indicating that some part of the underground chamber might still be unflooded. The tunnel leads upward to the facility’s top floor, where engineers have been trained to gather during emergencies. This upper level reportedly contains basic amenities such as filtered water and a rudimentary kitchen where workers prepared meals.
“There is some hope of life inside,” said Baburaja Maharjan, managing director of Chilime Hydropower, who has been at the site since the flood. The presence of oxygen and the possibility of shelter offer faint but vital encouragement to rescuers.
Kulman Ghising, former managing director of the Chilime Hydropower Company and a veteran of Nepal’s electrification, expressed deep concern for the trapped workers. Ghising, who once hired one of the missing men and helped construct several hydropower projects in the region, described the flood as a sudden and heartbreaking loss of years of work.
Among the missing is Saroj Pandey, a computer engineer who was on duty at the time of the flood. Mr. Pandey, who married two years ago and had a child last year, is remembered by friends as a calm and happy individual. One close friend, Swooruop Joshi, who lives in Australia, maintained contact with Mr. Pandey shortly before the deluge and has since created a website to document the search efforts.
Despite the slim chances of survival after more than two weeks, rescuers remain committed to their mission amid difficult conditions, driven by the hope that the presence of air may mean the workers have endured the disaster.