The 30-year-old Nepali hydropower worker has revealed how he survived for nine days inside a dark, debris-filled tunnel after a catastrophic flood devastated the Upper Trishuli 3A Hydropower Station.
Sanjay Shah, a mechanical foreman at the state-run Nepal Electricity Authority project, was trapped inside the facility after a devastating flood swept through the area following a Himalayan glacier collapse. He was eventually rescued alive on the 10th day of the disaster.
Speaking to Reuters after his rescue, Shah described an ordeal in which darkness, mud and debris transformed the familiar power station into a dangerous maze.
He said he often kept his eyes closed because he feared that moving through the debris could cause serious injury. Broken equipment and other objects were scattered throughout the tunnel, while mud and collapsed sections had dramatically changed the structure he previously knew well.
Shah also lost track of time. He initially believed that only two or three days had passed, but later discovered that he had spent nine days trapped underground.
In this regard, Shah turned to prayer and recited the Hindu Maha Mantra. He said the practice helped him remain calm and gave him the strength to continue waiting for rescue.
Shah survived by drinking seepage and flood water while remaining largely in one place to avoid exposing himself to additional dangers.
In the final hours before his rescue, he began hearing sounds from outside. The noises of excavators and rescue workers gave him renewed hope that rescuers had finally located the area where he was trapped.
Kabir Maharjan, was also trapped inside the tunnel. The two became separated during the initial flooding and were later rescued alive by a joint operation involving Nepal’s security forces and technical experts.
A Survivor Haunted by Those Who Did Not Escape
Despite surviving the ordeal, Shah said the experience left him with a painful memory. He had encouraged some people to leave the area when the disaster began, and some of those who escaped were later swept away by the flood.
The disaster itself caused widespread destruction across Nepal and Tibet. Reuters reported that the glacier-related catastrophe had killed at least 1,300 people and left more than 5,300 missing in the region at the time of its report.
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Shah’s survival has since emerged as one of the most remarkable human stories from the disaster — a story of darkness, fear, faith and an extraordinary determination to stay alive.
