Rescuers pull 2 people alive from tunnel more than week after flash floods in Nepal

Two people were rescued from a hydropower tunnel in Nepal more than a week after deadly flash floods struck the region, according to a report Friday.

The emergency response at the Trishuli 3A Hydropower Project came after a massive flash flood devastated the Nepal-China border, the BBC reported.

The Energy Ministry told BBC Nepali that that they expect at least 42 people to be rescued from the tunnel after rescuers heard voices early Friday.

​​​​​​​According to the report, the first person rescued, Sanjaya Shah, was airlifted to a hospital in Battar, located northwest of the capital Kathmandu, while the second person rescued, Kabir Maharjan, is "getting ready" to go to Chhauni Hospital, a military hospital in Kathmandu.

Floodwaters and mudslides devastated Nepal’s Rasuwa, Nuwakot, Dhading and Kavre districts as well as the Kathmandu Valley while also burying the Gyirong Port area in China’s southwestern Xizang Autonomous Region, also known as Tibet.

Nepal has confirmed 1,259 deaths with 5,083 people missing from last week’s flash floods. Authorities in China said 21 people were killed, while the search for 541 continues. The combined death toll from both countries stood at 1,280, while 5,624 people remained missing, including 844 foreign nationals.