A second life: How engineer survived 9 days trapped in Nepal tunnel

As rescue efforts in flood-ravaged Nepal entered the 10th day, two workers were rescued from a hydropower tunnel near the Trishuli River. Mechanical engineer Sanjay Sah, who was among the rescued, narrated the ordeal to India Today.

In Short

• Two workers rescued from Trishuli-3A hydropower project tunnel
• Over 1,250 dead in Nepal floods as rescue teams race against time
• Rescued worker recounts how he clung on to hope after disaster struck

Nine days after devastating flash floods in Nepal trapped several workers inside a hydropower project tunnel, and just as hopes of finding survivors were starting to fade, two workers were miraculously rescued on Friday. It was nothing less than a second life for mechanical engineer Sanjay Sah, who said he kept chanting the 'Hare Krishna Mahamantra' as he faced an uncertain wait between life and death. The other worker to be rescued from the tunnel at the Trishuli-3A hydropower project site was Kabir Maharjan.

Over 1,250 people have died after a flash flood swept through parts of the Nepal-Tibet border last week. Over 900 people are feared trapped along 12 different hydropower projects along the Trishuli River, as per Reuters. Sanjay and Kabir were the first two workers to be brought out after relentless attempts by the rescue team, which included experts from India, to find survivors at the project site.

Rashtriya Swatantra Party legislator Ram Neupane, an engineer involved in the rescue operations, said the police and army team heard voices from inside the tunnel a few days ago, raising hopes that the trapped workers were alive.

NEPAL FLOODS: WORKER DESCRIBES ORDEAL

On Friday, dramatic footage from the rescue site showed Nepali army personnel bringing out the survivors covered in mud and slush. When Sanjay was eventually pulled out, a look of relief appeared on his face. "You have been given a second life," the rescue team told him.

For Sanjay, the nine-day ordeal was about holding on to hope. He was in charge of the control room at the hydropower project when the flash floods struck. Around 40-45 workers were present at the site at that time.

Sanjay said the situation started deteriorating rapidly as floodwater and debris started entering the tunnel. Being a senior official, he said his responsibility included helping the other workers inside.

"I was responsible for the control room, so the responsibility of saving everyone was also on me," Sanjay, a resident of Nepal's Saptari, told the rescue team.

'KEPT CHANTING THE MAHAMANTRA'

When the disaster struck, Sanjay said he directed people towards safer areas. In the process, however, he himself got trapped. According to reports, the two workers were trapped at about 170 metres inside the tunnel.

Sanjay said only 3-4 people were near the place where he was stuck. However, he did not rule out the possibility of more workers being trapped near the powerhouse side of the tunnel.

"The tunnel is very long. Some people may be trapped inside because of the force of the water," he said.

Surviving nine days without food or water is not a matter for the faint-hearted. That both the workers managed to survive so many days inside a blocked tunnel suggests the presence of air pockets.

So, what helped him endure those nine days in darkness?

Sanjay said he kept chanting the 'Hare Krishna Mahamantra', which gave him the strength to survive. "I kept chanting the Mahamantra all throughout," he said.

For Hira Shobha, it was a deeply emotional moment when her husband, Kabir, was pulled out on a stretcher on Friday. "He has returned with a second life. We are extremely happy," she told Kathmandu Post.

However, beneath the tears of happiness lay the extreme pain the Maharjan family underwent in those nine days.

"It was so difficult to get through those days. We could neither eat nor sleep," Shobha said. "We believed he was still in there. We believed he would come back," she further said.

The remarkable feat of survival of Sanjay and Kabir in the face of overwhelming odds will undoubtedly give a ray of hope to the families of hundreds of workers still trapped across various hydropower projects.

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