The floods that struck Bhotekoshi on August 26 caused massive damage to the 37-megawatt Upper Trishuli-3 “B” hydropower project. After the flood and landslide, 191 people working at the project went missing. Of them, 13 have since been reached, but the company says 178 remain unaccounted for.
Search and rescue efforts for the missing have been ongoing since the day after the flood. But even after 13 days, no concrete information about them has emerged.
On Sunday, work to clear the audit tunnel and bring in heavy machinery continued until evening. Search efforts were reportedly intensified further from Monday.
But with rescue still not accomplished after so long, the patience of the missing workers’ and staff’s families is wearing thin. Today they gathered at Maitighar Mandala to protest, saying the government’s rescue effort has been slow and demanding an immediate, effective operation.
13 days, and still no rescue
Among those missing at the Upper Trishuli-3 “B” project is senior geologist Sumesh Amatya, whose wife, Prismuna Shrestha, remains unaware of her husband’s condition.
She says that although she has heard her husband was inside the project’s camp, she still has no information on whether he is alive.
“It’s not enough to just say it’s hard, it’s hard,” she says.
According to her, the family has not been given any clear official information so far.
From Singha Durbar to Maitighar Mandala
Rina Amatya Shrestha, sister of the missing senior geologist Sumesh Amatya, came to Maitighar to draw the government’s attention, saying rescue has still not happened after 13 days.
“Today marks 13 days, and there’s still been no rescue,” she says. “We came here to tell the government to carry out the rescue as quickly as possible.”
According to her, the flood struck while her brother Sumesh Amatya and 41 others were in a meeting inside a building at the project camp.
“My brother and everyone with him are trapped,” she says. “We went to Singha Durbar; we went everywhere. But since no news came from anywhere, we came here.”
She said the Bhotekoshi disaster should not be understood merely as an ordinary landslide.
“This can’t be called a landslide at all. This is a Himalayan tsunami,” she says. She said their one demand to the government is for the immediate search and rescue of the missing.
“Rescue isn’t possible without a large excavator”
One relative of the missing accused the government’s rescue effort of being slow. According to him, the flood struck while 42 people were in a meeting inside a building at the project camp.
“That meeting building is completely buried. Today marks the 13th day, and the government still hasn’t been able to carry out the rescue,” he says.
He said a small excavator was initially brought to the site, but since it could not effectively clear the debris, a larger-capacity excavator is now needed.
“Only with a large excavator can work begin properly there. It’s not a situation where people can just go and look and expect something to happen,” he says.
He said the family understands that although the Nepal Army has reached the site, it has been difficult to proceed due to a lack of sufficient personnel and equipment. The family also considers the absence of a helicopter capable of transporting heavy machinery to the site a major reason for the delay.
“We should have asked neighbours for help immediately”
Family members have also accused the government of being slow to seek necessary assistance from neighbouring countries, India and China, for the rescue.
“If we don’t have a helicopter that can carry a large excavator, we should have asked our neighbouring countries for help,” the relative says. “If that had been requested, it wouldn’t still be this delayed today.”
According to him, the government should have sought help for the necessary heavy equipment and a helicopter to transport it on the very first day of the disaster.
“Work began after a week”
Another relative alleged that it took a long time for rescue work to even begin.
“It looks like work only barely began after eight or nine days. At an extremely slow pace,” he says.
He said the family understands the government has not made adequate effort to arrange the helicopter needed to bring a large excavator to the site.
“The government hasn’t paid proper attention. It hasn’t even been able to arrange a helicopter for the large excavator,” he says.
He said that although the home minister went to inspect the site in person, it failed to bring about the expected improvement in the pace of rescue.
“The home minister himself went to the field and came back. But that has just been something of a show,” he says.
Four members of one family missing
Upper Trishuli-3 “B” project engineer Somnath Paudel, his wife Tara Upadhyaya, and their children are also missing since the flood. They had been living in the project’s staff quarters.
According to Somnath’s cousin Sagar Paudel, the family had spoken with them as recently as the evening before the flood.
“We talked until the evening the day before. Then this happened in the morning, and since then there’s been no contact,” he says.
Somnath, whose home is in Basgadhi Municipality-3, Bardiya, is the eldest son in his family. His youngest brother is currently in Bidur, waiting for word of him. Their elderly father and disabled mother, along with other family members, are now waiting for news of their condition.
After 13 days without any concrete information about their relatives, families are now seeking results, not reassurances. Their question is: if there is reason to believe people are trapped in the project’s camp, quarters, or tunnel area, why hasn’t every available technology, equipment, and workforce been used to intensify the search?
And if moving large machinery is difficult, they ask, whose responsibility is it to arrange the helicopters and equipment needed to do so?
