Search Intensifies for 93 Missing Workers at Rasuwagadhi Hydropower Project

A rescue operation has been intensified to locate people missing at the Rasuwagadhi Hydroelectricity Project site following the devastating flash flood in the Bhotekoshi River in Rasuwa on August 26.

A total of 93 people working at the 111-megawatt Rasuwagadhi Hydropower Project remain unaccounted for following the disaster.

According to the private secretariat of Minister for Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation Biraj Bhakta Shrestha, a technical and expert team has been conducting aerial reconnaissance of the project site using a Nepal Army helicopter as part of the ongoing search and rescue operation.

The Independent Power Producers’ Association Nepal (IPPAN) has reported that 93 people associated with the Rasuwagadhi Hydropower Project are missing.

Of the missing, 49 are employees of Rasuwagadhi Hydropower Company, while two are daily-wage workers. Among workers involved in construction activities, 35 employees of Sherpa Hydro Construction are reported missing. Likewise, four workers from CWE and three from Bhanas Construction are also unaccounted for.

The flood also trapped six people inside an underground descender at the project site. Four of them managed to escape on their own after remaining trapped for two days, while they were subsequently rescued by a military helicopter.

Search and rescue teams continue to assess the heavily damaged project area and surrounding locations to locate those still missing and determine the extent of the damage caused by the flash flood.