"Certain They Are Alive"... 90 People Trapped and Surviving in Two Tunnels?

[Anchor]

Nepalese authorities are focusing their efforts on finding survivors, particularly around hydroelectric power plant tunnels. They believe that about 90 people may be trapped and surviving in two tunnels.

Our correspondent Han Sang-woo reports from Nepal.

[Reporter]

Next to a valley still flowing with muddy, yellow water, the entrance of a hydroelectric power plant tunnel is visible.

Helicopters continuously drop off search and rescue personnel.

Among the 27 power plants affected by the massive floods, Nepalese authorities believe that about 90 people may have survived in two of them, and are concentrating their search capabilities accordingly.

The sites are the Rasuwagadhi power plant and the Trishuli 3A power plant.

An official from the Nepal Electricity Authority stated, "There is a room-like structure inside the Rasuwagadhi tunnel, and because there is drinking water and food there, we are certain that the missing persons are still alive."

The entrance of the Rasuwagadhi tunnel is relatively intact, and search teams plan to enter and locate this room.

[Sisir Kandal / Nepalese Minister of Foreign Affairs : If there are air pockets, people can survive inside a tunnel for a long period, and there have actually been cases where people were rescued.]

The tunnel at the Trishuli 3A power plant was blocked by thick mud, taking six days just to locate the tunnel entrance.

However, authorities expect that survivors could endure because there are oxygen pipes inside the tunnel.

Attention is also focused on the underground power generation facility space at the downstream end of the tunnel.

In the case of the Trishuli 3A underground power plant, it has a building structure 33 meters high, and at its top lies a multi-tiered space known as the "Goldilocks Zone."

To check for survivors, work is currently underway to drill down from the surface through the ceiling of the underground power plant.

In the disaster zone near the Tibet border immigration office, Chinese rescue teams are clearing away rocks and mud using heavy equipment.

However, they are facing difficulties in the search as the debris and sediment deposits average 4 meters deep, reaching up to 16 meters in the deepest areas.

(Video by: Joo Yong-jin, Kim Han-gyeol | Video Editing by: Park Choon-bae)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.