By SCM International Desk I Saturday, Sept. 04, 2026
KATHMANDU, Nepal — Emergency workers operating in treacherous conditions pulled an elderly woman and a male engineer alive from deep mud and structural debris, offering a rare ray of hope as search teams race against time following a catastrophic landslide.
The two survivors were extracted from within the subterranean complex of a devastated hydroelectric power station. Their rescue came roughly 24 hours after search teams freed two other workers, bringing the total number of survivors recovered from the site to four.
Rescuers equipped with heavy machinery, life-detection sensors, and rock-breaking tools believe additional personnel remain alive inside the plant’s subterranean tunnels.
”We are treating every hour as critical,” said emergency coordination officials on-site. “Finding people alive in these conditions after 24 hours gives us every reason to keep pushing into the plant’s sealed sections.”
The disaster struck following severe monsoon rain and glacial shifts across the Himalayan region, triggering widespread flash flooding and mudslides. River valleys overflowed, sweeping thick debris into infrastructure projects and isolated communities.
The hydroelectric plant—part of Nepal’s critical power infrastructure—was hit by a massive torrent of mud and boulders, trapping dozens of engineers, technicians, and local residents inside its subterranean structures.
The disaster has pushed the nation’s emergency infrastructure to its limits:
Death Toll: Official figures confirm at least 1,300 deaths across the affected districts, making it one of the deadliest disaster sequences in recent regional history.
Missing Persons:
Thousands of individuals remain unaccounted for as access to remote villages remains severed by destroyed roads and washed-out bridges.
Subterranean Complex:
The focus of search efforts remains heavily centered on the hydro station, where subterranean pockets have protected some individuals from the crushing weight of the mudflow.
Engineers and international emergency teams are working to stabilize the remaining structure of the hydro plant before pumping out water and clearing tons of wet silt.
While the window for finding further survivors is closing fast, the extraction of the engineer and the elderly woman has revitalized rescue efforts on the ground.
