Nepal rescuers blast hillside in search of hydropower workers as families wait anxiously
Rescue operations are intensifying in Nepal as teams use explosives to reach hundreds of workers trapped in hydropower tunnels following catastrophic flash floods. The disaster, triggered by a glacier collapse, has resulted in nearly 1,000 confirmed deaths and thousands of missing persons.
Why it matters
This is a major humanitarian crisis highlighting the vulnerability of critical infrastructure in mountainous regions to climate-induced disasters.
Image source, Nepal Army/Reuters Image caption, Army personnel have resorted to using explosives to blast into the hillside to reach the trapped workers
The families of more than 600 workers believed to be trapped in a vast network of mud-filled tunnels along Nepal's Trishuli River are clinging to hope their loved ones can be found alive.
Rescuers continued battling to reach them on Monday, using explosives to blast into the hillside before pumping air into the Trishuli-3A site - fearing a critical window to reach survivors is closing.
"I wish we could find him. I wish he would come home," Anushila Bhandari, wife of Aurus Bhandari, a 33-year-old engineer missing on a project site, told BBC Nepali.
It comes as the death toll from the flood disaster on the Nepal-Tibet border reached 939, according to the country's disaster management authority.
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