KATHMANDU: Two bodies have been recovered from the Langtang Hydropower Project tunnel in Rasuwa during an ongoing search and rescue operation for people believed to have been trapped inside following the devastating floods in the Bhotekoshi area.
The bodies were found on Thursday, the eighth day since the disaster, as rescue teams continued their search for people who may have been trapped inside the tunnel.
On Monday, a government rescue team attempted to enter the tunnel through the main route. However, after advancing to within 100 metres of the approximately 150-metre stretch, the team concluded that rescue operations could not be carried out through that route.
The project company subsequently mobilized its own team and announced that it would conduct the search and rescue operation. On Tuesday, the company searched for and arranged the necessary equipment and materials at the tunnel site.
On Wednesday, a team of seven to eight people, including a hydro-mechanical engineer, entered the project’s empty penstock pipe and prepared an alternative route to access the tunnel about 150 metres inside.
Members of the government rescue team entered the tunnel through the same route on Thursday morning. During the search, they recovered the bodies of two people believed to have been trapped inside.
Search and rescue operations are continuing as authorities suspect that additional people may still be trapped inside the tunnel.
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