Chinese national rescued from Nepal tunnel 10 days after flash flood - reuters.com

**Chinese Worker Rescued After Ten Days Trapped in Nepal’s Trishuli Tunnel**

A 30‑year‑old Chinese national working on a hydro‑electric project in Nepal’s central district was rescued on Thursday after spending ten days trapped in a water‑filled tunnel following a flash flood that struck the region on March 1. The worker, identified only as Li Wei by the Chinese embassy, was pulled to safety by a joint rescue team comprising Nepal’s Armed Police Force, the National Disaster Relief Fund and engineers from the project’s contractor. He emerged alive but weak, receiving immediate medical attention at a Kathmandu hospital before being handed over to Chinese officials for repatriation.

The flood, triggered by unprecedented monsoon rains, caused a sudden surge in the Trishuli River that breached a hillside and inundated a 400‑metre access tunnel used for transporting construction materials. The deluge also claimed the lives of at least 28 people and left dozens missing. In the days following the disaster, Nepalese rescuers managed to locate two additional survivors—an Indian laborer and a Nepali local—who were found clinging to debris inside the tunnel’s upper chambers. The operation, hampered by ongoing landslides and unstable terrain, relied on portable breathing apparatus, sonar equipment and drilling rigs to breach blocked sections.

Chinese Ambassador to Nepal, Wang Yao, hailed the successful rescue as a testament to “the solidarity and swift cooperation” between the two nations in the face of natural calamities. Nepal’s Home Minister, Bal Krishna Khand, pledged a thorough investigation into the tunnel’s safety standards and announced plans to reinforce vulnerable infrastructure along the Trishuli basin. Both governments emphasized the need for enhanced early‑warning systems and stricter oversight of foreign‑run construction projects to prevent similar tragedies in the future.