Kathmandu, Sep 4 (IANS) For 10 long days, every phone call brought hope, while every news update carried the possibility of either relief or heartbreak for the family of Kabir Maharajan, who was rescued alive from the flood-affected Upper Trishuli 3A hydropower project.
They barely slept and lost their appetite too while spending hours following television reports, social media posts and updates from various sources, constantly wondering whether they would hear from their missing family member. Then, on Friday morning, the wait ended.
At around 8:30 am, the news they had been desperately waiting for arrived: their loved one had been rescued alive.
“We are extremely happy that my elder brother, who had been missing for 10 days, has been rescued alive. The happiness this has brought to our family is beyond words and impossible to express,” his younger brother, Amir Maharajan, told IANS.
The rescued man was taken to the Nepal Army Hospital in Chhauni, Kathmandu, for treatment. The family caught only a brief glimpse of him as he was being taken inside.
“We saw him briefly while he was being taken into the hospital. His condition appears to be fine. He is currently receiving treatment in the treatment room, and we are waiting outside,” his younger brother said.
The family’s ordeal began with the deadly floods that swept through the Trishuli and Bhotekoshi river corridors on August 26.
The younger brother said he had spoken to Kabir just one day before the disaster.
“On the morning of the floods, my brother also had a talk with my daughter-in-law,” Amir said, recalling the last contact the family had with him before the disaster.
What followed were 10 days of uncertainty.
“The following 10 days were extremely painful and uncertain for us. We lost both sleep and appetite,” Amir said. “We kept following the media, Facebook and various sources for information and updates, wondering whether we would receive news about my brother today or tomorrow.”
The family lived in a constant state of anxiety, never knowing when the next piece of information would arrive or what it might bring.
“We were in a state of great panic, constantly wondering what news we might hear next,” the younger brother said.
At home, the family stayed together. His parents, sister-in-law, nieces, sister and other relatives supported one another as they waited.
They shared whatever information they received and tried to keep each other hopeful. The breakthrough came Friday morning.
While the family was anxiously waiting on Friday morning, as they had been for the past 10 days, they learned that another person had first been rescued from the tunnel. Soon afterward, they received the news that Kabir had also been brought out alive.
Kabir, 45, worked as a supervisor at the hydropower automation unit of the project. Along with him, Sanjaya Sah, 30, a foreman, was also rescued alive.
The Maharajan family then received a telephone call from the Nepal Electricity Authority confirming the rescue and informing them about the hospital to which Kabir was being taken.
After 10 days of fear and uncertainty, the family finally had something they had almost stopped daring to hope for: their loved one was alive.
“After the long and difficult 10-day wait, the entire family is filled with happiness to have my brother back safe and sound,” Amir said.
The successful rescue has also brought renewed hope to other families whose relatives remain unaccounted for after the floods.
The disaster killed at least 1,295 people, while 4,898 people remained out of contact as of Friday 2 pm, according to the latest update from Nepal Police.
The floods caused extensive damage to hydropower projects and other infrastructure along the Trishuli and Bhotekoshi corridors. Several people working at affected hydropower projects are still believed to be missing.
The Kabir’s family said they were deeply grateful to those who refused to give up during the search.
“On behalf of our family, we would like to express our heartfelt thanks to the Nepal Army, expert teams from the Armed Police Force, rescuers and everyone else who was directly or indirectly involved in the search and rescue operation, as well as everyone at home and abroad who supported us and stood by us throughout this difficult time,” Amir said.
Earlier, speaking to IANS, Laxmi Kumari Sah, wife of Sanjaya Sah, who was rescued from the tunnel of the same project, also expressed her delight at her husband’s rescue.
“I am very happy about the rescue of my husband, and it has brought happiness to all my family members,” Laxmi said. “I was at home when I heard about his rescue at around 8:30 a.m., and it brought a lot of joy to the family.”
Their rescue has also brought hope to other people who are believed to have been trapped inside the hydropower project.
According to a video circulated on social media, Sah said that there were three to four people left in his unit, while more than 40 people left the tunnel following the incident.
The Independent Power Producers’ Association, a grouping of private-sector power developers, said on Thursday evening that as many as 945 people working in 11 hydropower projects affected by the floods remained out of contact.
–IANS
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