"We press on toward the powerhouse": Arnold Dix on Chilime tunnel operation in Nepal

Kathmandu [Nepal], September 8 (ANI): Australian tunnel rescue expert Arnold Dix, internationally celebrated for his pivotal contribution in extracting 41 trapped workers from India’s Silkyara tunnel in 2023, gave an update on the ongoing rescue operation at the Chilime Hydropower Plant in Nepal, as Indian and Nepalese teams continue efforts to clear the tunnel of debris and mud.
Dix said the Nepalese Army, Nepalese rescue services, Indian Army and National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) were working together at the site with a single objective.
In a post on X, Dix said, “The dharma of this rescue is now at 110%. Nepalese Army. Nepalese Rescue Services. Indian Army. Indian NDRF. All on site. All working as a single team. One purpose. One mission."

Chilime Hydropower Plant, Nepal.
The dharma of this rescue is now at 110%.
Nepalese Army. Nepalese Rescue Services. Indian Army. Indian NDRF. All on site. All working as a single team. One purpose. One mission.
And engineer Member of Parliament Er. Sagar Dhakal is now on the… pic.twitter.com/WDl4dKnnXo

He also said engineer and Member of Parliament Er Sagar Dhakal was on the ground, taking responsibility and helping with decision-making during the rescue operation.
“And engineer Member of Parliament Er. Sagar Dhakal is now on the ground -- taking personal responsibility, making decisions, getting things done,” Dix said.
Dix said he travelled from the mountain site to a meeting chaired by Dirghayu Kumar Shrestha, Managing Director of the Nepal Electricity Authority, where he provided an emergency briefing.
“From the mountain, straight to the boardroom. I attended immediately to provide an emergency briefing to a meeting chaired by Dirghayu Kumar Shrestha, Managing Director of the Nepal Electricity Authority. Helicopter. Tunnel. Boardroom. One of my more extreme days in the office,” Dix added.
“This is what rescue looks like when nations value saving lives together. Hand by hand. Hour by hour. We press on toward the powerhouse,” he said.
“Hope is a duty. Love is the reason. Many Peoples, One World,” Dix added.
Meanwhile, Indian Ambassador to Nepal Naveen Srivastava said Indian and Nepalese teams continued efforts to manually clear debris and mud from the Chilime tunnel.
In a post on X, Srivastava said, “Chilime Tunnel Rescue Operation update: India and Nepal teams continued their efforts to manually clear the tunnel of debris and mud. To overcome the challenge posed by sloping tunnel teams have deployed HDPE pipes to ensure smooth movement inside the tunnel."

Chilime Tunnel Rescue Operation update: 🇮🇳 and 🇳🇵 teams continued their efforts to manually clear the tunnel of debris and mud. To overcome the challenge posed by sloping tunnel teams have deployed HDPE pipes to ensure smooth movement inside the tunnel. Meanwhile progress… pic.twitter.com/8cMSfALntu

He said work was also progressing on creating a temporary track from Syafrubesi to the tunnel portal through controlled blasting.
“Meanwhile, progress continued to be made to create a temporary track from Syafrubesi to the tunnel portal using controlled blasting. The access path will allow for heavy machinery to be deployed in the tunnel,” he said.
According to Nepal’s National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority (NDRRMA), the human casualty count in the floods stood at 1,358 as of 6 PM on September 8.
The authority said 170 bodies had been recovered in Rasuwa, 197 in Nuwakot, 70 in Dhading, 75 in Gorkha, 38 in Tanahun, 363 in Chitwan, 223 in Nawalparasi East and 222 in Nawalparasi West, including unidentified human remains.
The latest update put the number of missing persons at around 5,326, including 2,860 from Rasuwa and around 1,981 Nepali citizens from Nuwakot. Around 587 foreign tourists were also reported missing.
NDRRMA said 102 bodies had been handed over, and this figure had been deducted from the total number of missing persons. It said DNA samples could be submitted at the concerned District Police Office along with two photographs and proof of kinship.

मनसुन प्रतिकार्य कमाण्ड पोष्टको १५ औं बैठकले हाल सञ्चालनमा रहेको खोज,उद्धार एवं उपचार सेवामा प्रयोग भएका तथा भविष्यमा आइपर्नसक्ने विपद्‍मा प्रयोग गर्ने गरी भण्डारण गरिने सामग्रीको रेकर्ड प्राधिकरणको केन्द्रीय इन्भेन्टरीमा राख्ने निर्णय गरेको छ।@moha_nepal pic.twitter.com/18zAnyeH1v

NDRRMA said the 15th meeting of the Monsoon Countermeasure Command Post had decided to maintain records of materials currently being used in ongoing search, rescue and treatment operations, as well as materials to be stored for potential use in future disasters, in the authority’s Central Inventory. (ANI)