Kathmandu, August 31
The Nepal Army says it found no one inside the tunnel of the 111MW Rasuwagadhi Hydropower Project, but three employees who were on duty inside when the Bhotekoshi flood struck remain unaccounted for.
The Nepal Army, project engineers and a drone team searched the tunnel up to its far end after concerns that people could have been trapped inside. The team said it found no human presence and returned to Dhunche after completing the search.
But the whereabouts of three employees who were reportedly on duty inside the tunnel when the flood struck remain unknown.
The apparent discrepancy has raised questions about what happened to the three workers and whether the search inside the tunnel was sufficient.
According to a project official, three employees were on duty inside the tunnel when the flood hit. The power plant was operating at the time, with employees working in two shifts—from 7am to 7pm and from 7pm to 7am.
“The plant was running. The night-shift employees went there at 7pm and were on duty until 7am,” the official said.
The three employees on duty inside the tunnel have been identified as Kishor Neupane of Palpa, Santosh Paudel of Pyuthan and Chhiring Tamang of Rasuwa. Their current whereabouts are unknown.
“There were three people inside the tunnel, and around 14 to 15 people in total outside,” the official said.
The three were responsible for tasks related to operating the power plant.
Employees were also working outside the tunnel, including at the switchyard, where staff had been deployed for the night shift.
According to the project, 93 employees and workers remain unaccounted for following the flood. Of them, 49 are employees of Rasuwagadhi Hydropower Company and two are daily-wage workers.
The company said 35 workers from Sherpa Hydro Construction, four from CWE and three from Venus Construction are also missing.
Army searched tunnel to its end
Search and rescue operations at the project did not begin immediately after the flood. The rescue team could not reach the project site until Saturday, and the search operation began only on Sunday. The Nepal Army then entered the tunnel along with project engineers and a drone team after concerns that workers could be trapped inside.
The team searched through the tunnel and reached its far end but reported finding no people. Project officials confirmed that their engineers had accompanied the Army team.
“Our engineers also went inside, and the Army team went as well,” the official said.
However, there is still no confirmed explanation of what happened to the three workers who were reportedly on duty inside the tunnel when the flood struck. Although the search team says it reached the end of the tunnel, authorities have not established whether the three workers managed to leave the tunnel before or during the flood, or whether they moved to another part of the project.
93 workers remain unaccounted for
The three workers inside the tunnel are among dozens of people whose whereabouts remain unknown after the flood.
According to the project, employees and workers were stationed both inside and outside the tunnel when the disaster occurred. Those working outside included two cleaning workers, two guards, two cooks and an engineer, in addition to employees assigned to the night shift.
“There were three people on duty inside the tunnel. Others were at the switchyard outside, while another employee assigned to the night shift was also on duty outside,” the official said.
The flood also trapped six people in the project’s underground desander. Four of them managed to make their way out on their own after spending two days in difficult conditions.
The Nepal Army later rescued them by helicopter and brought them to Kathmandu.
While those four survived by reaching safer areas, the fate of the three employees who were on duty inside the Rasuwagadhi tunnel remains unclear.
