Search teams pulled two surviving mechanical workers from a flooded underground tunnel at the Trishuli 3A hydropower project in Nepal on Friday, September 5, 2026, nine days after a catastrophic glacial collapse and flash flood struck the region, according to reports from AFP and local officials. Mechanical foreman Sanjay Shah and mechanical supervisor Kabir Maharjan emerged alive from the debris-choked facility, providing a rare beacon of hope amid a disaster that has killed at least 1,294 people in Nepal, according to figures released by the country’s disaster management agency.
The Rescue Operation at Trishuli 3A
Rescuers faced severe operational hurdles while trying to reach the trapped workers at the Trishuli 3A site along the Nepal-Tibet border. According to Australian engineer and geologist Arnold Dix, who advised on the operation, teams struggled to locate the exact access point before encountering vehicle-sized boulders that blocked the tunnel network. Rescuers had to use explosives to clear the path—a risky method given the instability—before digging an emergency trench to drain water-filled shafts. Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) reporting detailed how rescuers heard a faint voice fifty meters inside the tunnel Friday morning before making contact.
“We’ve found two people alive, so that gives us hope,” Dix told reporters, noting that the success provides vital focus for ongoing searches in other damaged locations across the region. Dix brings prior disaster experience from the 2023 Silkyara Bend-Barkot tunnel collapse in India, where all 41 workers were rescued, as well as response efforts at Ground Zero following the September 11 attacks.
Inside the Tunnel: Accounts from the Survivors
According to reporting, the two men found themselves trapped underground under vastly different circumstances when the flash flood hit on the morning of August 26, 2026. Sanjay Shah, a 30-year-old employee of the Nepal Electricity Authority from Saptari district, was working his shift in the project control room. Shah told military officials that he delayed his own evacuation to help direct approximately 40 to 45 colleagues to safety, a decision that ultimately prevented his own escape as water surged into the underground network. He spent the nine days trapped underground chanting prayers.
His co-survivor, Kabir Maharjan, a mechanical supervisor from Kirtipur who had worked for the NEA for over 15 years, had traveled from the Kulekhani hydropower project for scheduled maintenance work, according to his brother Amir Maharjan. Maharjan’s wife, Hira Shobha, noted that her husband had warned her his phone would stop working before heading underground for work on August 26. Following their extraction, both men received initial medical treatment at the site before being airlifted to Birendra Sainik Hospital in Kathmandu, where Maharjan was admitted for intensive treatment of a leg injury while Shah was listed in stable condition.
Did you know?
According to the Ministry of Energy, the Trishuli 3A rescue video showed emergency teams carrying one survivor on a stretcher while he pressed his hands together in prayer, marking the first successful extraction of workers from a major hydropower construction site since the disaster struck.
Casualties and International Aid Deployment
The scale of the disaster remains immense. According to the Nepali government’s disaster management agency, the confirmed death toll reached 1,294 as of September 4, 2026, with 5,053 people still missing, including 583 foreign nationals. Across the border in Chinese-controlled Tibet, the Chinese government reported 31 confirmed deaths and 531 missing people, including 261 foreign citizens, according to regional tallies.
While Nepal has largely declined broader international assistance, specialized foreign teams have arrived to support targeted search operations. As reported by ABC News, a 15-person Australian Disaster Assistance Response Team landed in Kathmandu late Friday night to provide specialist drone services, joining 38 total Australian government officials, disaster response specialists, and humanitarian workers on the ground. Commissioner Jeremy Fewtrell of Fire and Rescue New South Wales told reporters in Sydney that teams are maintaining hope that additional survivors may be located in isolated pockets.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who were the workers rescued from the Nepal tunnel?
The two survivors are Sanjay Shah, a 30-year-old mechanical foreman, and Kabir Maharjan, a mechanical supervisor, both employed in connection with the Trishuli 3A hydropower project.
How long were the workers trapped underground?
According to local reports and official statements, both men survived inside the flooded tunnel for nine days following the initial flash flood on August 26, 2026, before being rescued on September 5, 2026.
What caused the flash flooding along the Nepal-Tibet border?
Reports note that the disaster was triggered by the partial collapse of a glacier, sending a torrential wave of water, mud, and rock down Himalayan valleys and damaging approximately 27 hydropower projects.
Are other workers still missing?
Yes. Disaster management authorities report that over 5,000 people remain missing across the affected river basins, with search-and-rescue operations remaining active at multiple hydropower sites.
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