Overview
- Rescuers extracted two men, identified as Sanjay Shah and Kabir Maharjan, from the Upper Trishuli 3A tunnel nine days after the 26 August glacial collapse; Maharjan is reported in serious condition and Shah is in more stable condition.
- Teams used excavators, explosives, helicopter support, rope access and old maps to break into sealed tunnels as international experts from India, China and South Korea assisted Nepalese rescuers.
- Authorities say hundreds to thousands of people were killed or are missing and roughly 900 hydropower workers remain unaccounted for, but official tallies differ sharply between Nepalese and Chinese/Tibetan reports.
- Recovered bodies are being buried in mass graves and DNA samples are being taken to allow later identification, with Kathmandu accepting some foreign help to manage the scale of the task.
- The disaster has exposed risks in concentrating large construction workforces in remote Himalayan tunnel sites and could disrupt Nepal’s electricity supply, with officials and families awaiting clearer casualty updates and identifications.