RASUWA: Rescue prospects remain for people trapped inside the Chilime Hydropower Project in Rasuwa, which was severely damaged by the flood on Bhadra 10, with blasting now underway to clear a passage into the tunnel.
Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) lawmaker and engineer Sagar Dhakal provided the update on Monday. Dhakal and Shriram Neupane, head of the party’s Mines and Energy Department, had reached the tunnel area of the 22.1 MW Chilime Hydropower Project two days earlier.
The tunnel at the Chilime Hydropower Project has been blocked by debris following the massive flood in the Bhotekoshi River. At least six employees trapped inside the tunnel have yet to be rescued.
Teams from the Nepali Army and Indian Army remain deployed at the site to assist in the rescue operation.
Dhakal, who is at the rescue site, said explosives and materials remaining from the Trishuli-3A Hydropower Project in Kispang Rural Municipality of Nuwakot were used for the first blasting operation. He said the blasting has increased the possibility of opening a passage into the tunnel.
Dhakal said there was a possibility that the people trapped inside could be rescued soon.
“We may be able to rescue the other six people soon. The first blasting was carried out today using materials brought from Trishuli-3A,” he said. “The Trishuli-3A tunnel slopes upward, so we used a water-jet method to remove the soil. The Chilime tunnel slopes downward, so a different method is needed.”
He said equipment for the new method was prepared on Monday afternoon and would be brought to Chilime after reaching Bidur in Nuwakot overnight.
“If the work progresses rapidly from tomorrow, we will see whether we can enter the tunnel by tomorrow evening or the following morning,” he said.
Dhakal acknowledged that the rescue operation might not proceed exactly as expected because of conditions inside the tunnel but said the team remained highly optimistic.
“It is tunnel work, so things may not go exactly as planned, but we are very hopeful,” he said.
Rescue operation continues
Rescue efforts for those trapped inside the Chilime Hydropower Project tunnel have been continuing for several days. Difficult terrain, adverse weather and the complete disruption of road networks have made it challenging to transport the required personnel, materials and equipment to the site.
Twenty-one personnel from the Nepali Army and Indian Army are currently working inside the tunnel, manually removing soil and heavy debris. Around 100 metres of the 250-metre-long tunnel has so far been cleared.
As manual excavation alone has proved difficult, authorities have given high priority to plans to bring a large excavator to the site. Construction of an access road from Syafru to the powerhouse portal began on Saturday to facilitate the transportation of the excavator.
Work is also underway on an option to take the excavator through the tunnel. For this, teams are continuing to clear debris accumulated along approximately 100 metres of the tunnel.
As large helicopters cannot land at the site, efforts are also underway to transport essential materials and equipment using smaller helicopters.
Officials said rescue efforts had not been halted despite the significant geographical and technical challenges. Access road construction, deployment of necessary equipment and removal of debris from inside the tunnel are being carried out on a priority basis.
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