19 August Rasuwa-Nuwakot. "Hello" and "Sir" are two common addresses. But for the people who were lost inside the tunnels of the Upper Trishuli 3-A hydroelectric project for 10 days, those were not just words. The same thing happened to the rescuers who were advancing two hundred meters from the outside of the tunnel, when someone from inside returned the answer of 'Hello' to 'Sir'.
The rescuers' eyes lit up in the dark as soon as they heard the voice of 'Sir'.
Nepali Army, Armed Police and District Police, and the expert rescue team of Electricity Authority turned on the lights and looked at each other.
And he tried to move forward with hasyangfasyang in rescue. But there was an obstacle for them, a ledge with stones that had fallen awkwardly in the tunnel.
Immediately they advised - to drill in the same way, as it was drilled in places to find the outer mouth of the tunnel. If that is not enough, the blast will be thrown. They used explosives and rock drilling machines to break large rocks and widen the holes for people to get through to the other side.
But there was a danger - when blasting like that, wouldn't some of those trapped in the tunnel become victims?
According to the information provided by the 'Special Force', Combat Engineer and 'Collapse Structure Search and Rescue' team of the Nepali Army deployed immediately after the flood, they had to wait for a few hours to prevent such a situation from happening.
In this way, even though the voice of Hello and Sir connected, the rescuers and the trapped people could not meet each other immediately. There wasn't much time, anything could happen if there was a delay.
After making sure that the parts of the stone that were being cut were safely blasted, they shouted once again - Hello.
The answer came again, sir.
Now there was no obstacle for the rescue team to proceed. He was giving oxygen by sending a cylinder inside the tunnel. The lights started to turn on more and more in the mud. There was a fear that the rescuer would not get stuck in the mud. Even a rope became a big support at such a time.
When Sanjay Shah was found safe. Then they took turns collecting rescue items to take out. Gave the news out of the communication set. On Friday morning, when the team of Online Khabar reached the Trishuli 3A tunnel, the Nepali rescuers had news of miraculous success and hope to tell the world.
From there again, a soft voice called 'Hello' was heard. They are - project supervisor Kavir Maharjan. After some time, the rescue of Kavir Maharjan was also possible.
According to the information given by Lt. Col. Ganga Baral, one of the frontliners of the rescue, to Online News, this result has been achieved through continuous and effective coordination between the disaster rescuers. "Though it took some time to get the results, finally we succeeded in rescuing two people safely," Lt. Col. Baral said, "We proved that Nepalis can do and achieve miraculous success in disaster rescue which was considered impossible."
As Baral said, why is this news not miraculous! Out of those trapped in the tunnel, 42 people were not found for 10 days. But Nepalese rescuers had a great success in the rescue operation which was not only extremely risky, but also considered impossible by some people. Keshav Dhakal, who is in the army's engineer unit, has been here since the day after the flood, i.e. 11 August. He dedicated his entire team for the success of this task which is considered more difficult than the most difficult.
As anxious as we were to share these successes with the world, these rescuers themselves seemed determined to not think of anything other than the safe rescue of the remaining trapped. Home Minister Sudhan Gurung came here and stayed for some time. He was in a nearby tent while the rescue team continued to work. After the news of the successful rescue of two people from 200 meters inside, he came to the mouth of the tunnel carrying an oxygen pipe.
The rescue and the team need constant encouragement and encouragement and the results of agile decisions with outside management. The responsible people at the top level of the government are being criticized for spending less time on specific tasks. But Home Minister Gurung has given a message that he wants to work differently from the previous characters.
Starting from Bhotekoshi region, till the 10 days of the Himalayan Tsunami, Nepal has not come down from the main or subsidiary news of the media around the world. At this time, the world is watching with bated breath towards the tunnels of Trishuli 3A and other hydroelectric projects in this region. It seems that the main media from all over the world have come to this area and are waiting for good news.
The security personnel have requested that there should be no crowding of unrelated characters. According to Anil Pokharel, the former CEO of the Disaster Authority, the crisis created in Bhotekoshi and Trishuli areas has become a failure not only of Nepal, but of the entire world and the nations of power.
And those respective countries did not want to fail themselves in the northern part of Nepal. Most of the main structures including Trishuli 3A Powerhouse are in Kispang Rural Municipality Ward No. 5 of Nuwakot. The dam is located in Uttar Gaya Rural Municipality of Rasuwa.
Among those who were rescued in the tunnel, the body of one person has been recovered till the time of writing these lines. The disaster response mechanism wants other rescue operations to proceed as quickly as possible.
DSP Amrit Thapa, one of the leaders of the rescue operation, said, "When we met them, they were in a condition where they could open their eyes and see." When we heard their screams, we became more alert and worked on the rescue.
DSP Thapa said that they are trying to get oxygen cylinders inside with the hope that others will be safe there.
It is difficult for the rescuers to enter the tunnel because the mountain has fallen at the mouth of the tunnel. But the rescuers also cut it and threw it away.
Our special contribution was to cut iron and throw concrete. Now that all those mountains have been cut and thrown inside, there is no risk like before," DSP Thapa said, "Our armed team worked day and night in three shifts of six and six people. The commander's work was 24 hours a day. After the work is done, we go two kilometers away and stay with the army.
With the initial rescue success of Trishuli 3A, rescue workers in other tunnels have also been encouraged.
The rescue workers have been able to enter 426 meters in the under construction Trishuli-3B tunnel near Shimle in Nuwakot. According to the directorate of military public relations and information, the rescue personnel reached 426 meters to search for those trapped in the tunnel due to the flood in Bhotekoshi.
On the other hand, 93 people from Rasuwagadhi Hydropower Company Limited are still without contact. The project has informed that although efforts are being made to search for them, it is becoming difficult due to bad weather.
According to company secretary Naranath Neupane, 51 regular employees, one director, two daily wage workers and 39 people from three contractor companies are out of contact.
A team including the army is also in the process of entering the Chilime hydropower station more than 150 meters ahead. The work of 8 feet long and 3 feet wide road has been completed by drilling holes at various places inside the tunnel of Langtang Hydro. More rescue efforts are underway.
In Rasuwagadhi Hydro, the army team has entered the tunnel within about 300 meters.
Video and picture: Shankar Giri/Online News
Basant Basnet is the editor-in-chief of Online Khabar. His 'Mahabhara' and 'Simsara' novels and '72 ko Bismay: Constituent Madhes and Blockade' topical history have been published in three books.
