Disasters & Incidents
Nepal flood: two rescued alive after 10 days
Nepal's army and police said rescuers pulled two people alive on Saturday, 10 days after catastrophic flooding struck the China-Nepal border region.
A Nepal Army team with foreign experts rescued a Chinese man from 225 metres inside a tunnel at the Upper Trishuli-1 Hydropower Project in Rasuwa district, the military said. The army identified him only as Luhaitao and said his health was being assessed.
Later Saturday, Nepal's Armed Police Force pulled 64-year-old Chandrika Shrestha alive from her buried home in Nuwakot district. Police deputy superintendent Iqbal Hawari told AFP that officers found her while clearing the area and that she had been airlifted to Kathmandu for treatment.
The two rescues followed the rescue on Friday of two Nepali hydropower workers at the Trishuli 3A tunnel. Both were reported to be in stable condition in a Kathmandu hospital.
The workers were among hundreds of hydropower staff who went missing after a wall of water and mud swept through the border area following a glacial and rock collapse on August 26. At least 12 hydropower projects were destroyed.
Nepal's national disaster agency said 1,344 bodies had been recovered in Nepal and around 5,000 people were missing. Chinese state media said 31 people had been killed and 531 were missing in China, bringing the overall stated toll to 1,375 dead and more than 5,500 missing.
Experts from India, China, Australia and South Korea have been helping Nepali rescuers search blocked tunnels. Rescuers have also used drones to deliver medicine, food and supplies and to transport bodies in areas difficult to reach by road.
The United Nations has launched a $50 million appeal to help more than 84,000 people affected by the disaster. Nepal Police said about 1,030 bodies had been buried in mass graves after DNA samples were taken for future identification.
Prime Minister Balendra Shah promised safe and comfortable accommodation for thousands of displaced people living in temporary relief camps.
Update
Nepal's Armed Police Force pulled 64-year-old Chandrika Shrestha alive from her partially submerged home in Nuwakot district.
Police said Shrestha was found while teams were clearing the area and was airlifted to Kathmandu for treatment.
A video released by Nepal's Armed Police Force showed lower floors of the home submerged in thick sludge.
Drone operators were delivering medicine, food and other supplies and transporting bodies in hard-to-reach high-altitude areas.
The United Nations launched a $50 million appeal to help more than 84,000 people affected by the disaster.
Source note: AFP news report published on 5 September 2026 at 10:57:48 UTC.
Update
Nepal’s army said the Chinese national was rescued from 225 metres inside the Upper Trishuli-1 Hydropower Project tunnel in Rasuwa district.
The rescued man was identified only as Luhaitao.
Nepal’s disaster agency said 1,344 bodies had been recovered in Nepal and around 5,000 people were missing.
Chinese state media said 31 people had been killed and 531 were missing in China, bringing the stated overall toll to 1,375 dead and more than 5,500 missing.
Nepal Police said about 1,030 bodies had been buried in mass graves after DNA samples were taken.
Source note: AFP news report published on 5 September 2026 at 08:59:55 UTC.
Update
An army spokesman told AFP that a Chinese national was rescued alive from a tunnel in Nepal.
Source note: AFP news report published on 5 September 2026 at 08:08:04 UTC.
Uncertainty notes
The Chinese man's full identity and medical condition were not provided.
The exact number of missing people remains approximate in the supplied figures.
Many bodies buried in mass graves await future identification through DNA samples.
Source
AFP news report published on .