Nepal-China Floods Trap Tunnels as Toll Rises

Rescuers are trying to reach roughly 500 workers believed trapped inside mud-buried tunnels at 12 hydropower sites on the Nepal–China border as floods surge. The death toll in Nepal and China has surpassed 900 with more than 4,400 missing. Some workers are inside tunnels large enough to drive through, while others may have limited oxygen and require urgent food and water. The rescue operation faces extreme engineering challenges in high-altitude, debris-filled tunnels across Rasuwa and Nuwakot districts, where entrances are buried under meters of debris but tunnel structures remain intact. International assistance has arrived from the United States, India, China, Japan, South Korea, Singapore and others, including DNA testing kits, LiDAR, forensic teams, relief equipment for tunnel rescue and disaster response. U.S. authorities report dozens of Americans among missing or unaccounted-for, with ongoing efforts to verify citizenship and provide relief.