Rescuers Pull Two Survivors from Mud 11 Days After Nepal Glacier Collapse
A 64-year-old woman and a Chinese worker have been rescued alive in northern Nepal, 11 days after a massive Himalayan glacier collapse triggered devastating mudslides.
Eleven days after giant mudslides struck northern Nepal following a glacier collapse in the Himalayas, rescuers have successfully pulled a 64-year-old woman alive from the debris.
The Nepalese woman was rescued from a completely destroyed house in the devastated town of Nuwakot. Images released by the Nepalese military showed rescue teams uncovering the woman, who was submerged in thick mud, before she was brought to safety and evacuated by helicopter to Kathmandu for medical treatment.
Nepalese police officers cheered as she was pulled from the house, the lower level of which was buried under heavy mud. For the rescue teams, the survival was a rare moment of relief amid a major disaster that has left hundreds dead and caused unimaginable destruction.
Hydroelectric Plant Rescue
In a separate incident, a Chinese national was rescued from the Trishuli hydroelectric dam area in the north of the country. The man was freed from a hydroelectric power tunnel, according to a social media post by the Nepalese Prime Minister's office. This brings the total number of workers rescued alive from the Trishuli energy project to three, following the rescue of two Nepalese workers on Friday.
The Nepalese military stated that a joint rescue team of Nepalese army personnel and South Korean disaster specialists extracted the man from a 225-meter (approximately 740-foot) tunnel, and he is currently undergoing medical evaluation. Images showed him being evacuated by helicopter, with a military medic examining him during the flight.
A photograph published by Chinese state broadcaster CCTV showed two rescuers carrying the man, identified as Lu Haitao, out of the tunnel.
Chinese news networks shared audio of Lu speaking with an officer, describing how he screamed repeatedly whenever he saw the lights of the rescue teams, though they could not hear him.
"When they rescued me today, when they shone the light into my eyes, I couldn't believe it," he said.
