Trapped 9 Days Underground in Pitch Darkness: Two Men Survive Nepal Dam Tunnel by Drinking Muddy Water – Then Voices Echoed and Rescuers Broke Through
In a remote Himalayan valley in Nepal’s Rasuwa district, two hydropower workers endured nine days of complete darkness, cold mud, and dwindling hope after a catastrophic glacial collapse buried their workplace under a torrent of ice, rock, and debris. On September 4, 2026, rescuers finally pulled Sanjay Sah, 30, a mechanical foreman, and Kabir Maharjan, 45, a mechanical supervisor, alive from a tunnel at the Upper Trishuli 3A hydropower project—nine days after the August 26 disaster that killed more than 1,300 people across Nepal and Tibet and left thousands missing.
The disaster struck around mid-morning on August 26 when a glacier on the upper reaches of the Trishuli River collapsed, sending a wall of mud and boulders surging through the valley. The force buried the hydropower station so completely that engineers later relied on satellite images just to locate the site amid the transformed landscape. Dozens of workers were inside tunnels and chambers when the flood hit. Sah, working in the control room, stayed behind to warn and help colleagues escape. By the time he tried to leave, exit routes were blocked. Maharjan was also trapped nearby.
The two men found themselves in a small air-filled chamber roughly 160–170 meters inside a cable-duct tunnel that had been less fully inundated. Pitch darkness enveloped them. There was no food. Oxygen remained breathable thanks to the sealed air pocket, but the space was wet and cold. Maharjan, who drifted in and out of consciousness, survived by sipping the same muddy water in which he lay. Sah sustained himself by repeatedly chanting Hindu mantras, later saying the prayers helped him hold on to courage. Both men later reported hearing or sensing the presence of a few others farther inside the tunnel system, though contact was limited.
Rescue teams faced enormous obstacles. The tunnel entrance had vanished under meters of sludge and rocks the size of vehicles. Workers spent days clearing debris with excavators, hydraulic cutters, and, in places, controlled explosives—an unusual step in a live-rescue scenario. Water had to be drained. Progress was slow and dangerous; rescuers worried about further collapses or flooding. International expertise supported the Nepali Army and local teams, but conditions remained treacherous.
Early on September 4, after days of near-silent effort, rescuers heard faint responses from inside. They called out assurances and received replies confirming life. Soldiers then forced a small opening through the remaining mud. First Sah, then Maharjan were extracted. Both emerged covered in thick mud, unable to stand. Sah was carried on a rescuer’s back and managed a weak wave toward cameras. Maharjan, more severely injured and initially unable to move his limbs, was brought out on a stretcher. The pair were airlifted to an army hospital in Kathmandu. Sah was reported in stable condition; Maharjan required intensive care.
The rescue offered a rare moment of hope amid one of Nepal’s worst natural disasters in decades. Hundreds of workers remain unaccounted for across multiple hydropower tunnels along the river. The body of a third man was recovered near the same site. Search efforts continue, guided by the knowledge that air pockets can sustain life longer than many expected.
The two men’s survival underscores both the extreme conditions inside the tunnels and the determination of rescue crews who refused to abandon the possibility of life. In the darkness of an underground chamber, with only muddy water and faith to sustain them, Sah and Maharjan waited—and were found.
