Two men have been airlifted to hospital in Kathmandu after being pulled out alive from a tunnel linked to a hydropower station in Nepal.
At least 39 others are thought to be trapped in the same tunnel, with more than 100 still missing across a network of tunnels at hydropower sites along the Trishuli River.
Sanjay Sah, a mechanical foreman at the plant on the Trishuli River, and Kabir Maharjan, a mechanical supervisor, were rescued from the tunnel at the Upper Trishuli 3A Hydropower Station.
"Kabir Maharjan, who was rescued second, is in a critical state and is undergoing treatment at the Army Hospital in Kathmandu," the Nepal Prime Minister's office said in a statement. Mr Saha will also undergo medical examinations in the same hospital, it added.
Mr Maharjan cannot move his hands nor his legs but Mr Sah's injuries are not severe, an aide to Biraj Bhakta Shrestha, Nepal's Energy Minister, told Reuters.
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Emergency workers carry a survivor found in a tunnel at the Trishuli-3A hydropower project in Nepal. Reuters -
A worker is extracted from a tunnel connected to a hydropower station in Nepal, nine days after becoming trapped. EPA -
The Nepali search operation has been focused on tunnels at the country's hydropower sites. Reuters -
A hydropower tunnel survivor is flown to Kathmandu to receive treatment. Reuters -
A survivor found at the the Trishuli-3A hydropower site. Thousands of people are still missing in Nepal. Reuters -
A worker rescued from a hydropower tunnel in the flood-hit Rasuwa district of Nepal. EPA -
A survivor is carried to safety at a tunnel in the Rasuwa district. Reuters -
Nepali authorities are searching for survivors after the flash flood that has left more than 1,000 dead. Reuters -
A rescued worker is treated outside a tunnel at the hydropower site in the Rasuwa district, which was devastated by the flood. EPA
The rescue came nine days after the collapse of a glacier sent a flood of ice, rock and mud hurtling down the Trishuli in Nepal's border region with China, wiping out towns and villages, and killing more than 1,250 people. More than 4,200 people are still missing, with thousands more displaced.
Amshu Kiran Shahi, a board member of the Nepal Electricity Authority, said rescue workers took almost six days to reach the tunnel because the entrance was buried. He said they have tried to pipe oxygen into cavities in case anyone else is trapped.
At Rasuwagadhi hydropower plant, rescue workers reached 250 metres into one tunnel before finding it blocked. They have not given up the search.
“We are trying to reach inside again to look for people,” said Mr Shahi, who added up to 46 people may be trapped in a chamber where they might have access to food and water.
A UAE relief mission has travelled to Nepal to provide aid and support. The specialist team includes experts in disaster relief, medical evacuation and first aid. Australian disaster response specialists left for Nepal on Friday to join the search for survivors.
Meanwhile, at least 22,000 children urgently need safe drinking water, sanitation and hygiene support, the UN Children’s Fund said.
Water systems have been damaged across affected districts, while many toilets and other sanitation facilities have been damaged or destroyed, raising the risk of infectious waterborne diseases.
“Every parent in these districts is now making the same calculation several times a day,” said Unicef's Nepal representative Alice Akunga. “Where can I get water and is it safe to give to my child?”
Unicef estimates at least 19 schools have been damaged, including eight that were destroyed, while more than 10,000 school-age children need immediate psychosocial support as well as access to safe learning spaces.
Property, housing and infrastructure worth at least $2.56 billion has been wiped out in the disaster, according to Nepal's disaster authority chief. Dharmaraj Upreti said Nepal will need to rebuild about 20,000 houses in flood-ravaged areas.
