How WhatsApp is helping engineers guide Nepal’s flood rescue operations:Sharing maps, technical drawings, and information about its access tunnels

A WhatsApp group has become an unexpected lifeline for rescue teams searching for survivors after a devastating flash flood hit Nepal’s Trishuli valley. While rescuers are using helicopters, excavators and other heavy equipment, engineers are using the messaging app to share tunnel maps, technical information and details about missing workers. The flood struck the valley on August 26, sweeping away buildings, roads and parts of several hydropower projects. More than a week later, rescue teams are still searching underground tunnels where some workers may have taken shelter. Engineers turn WhatsApp group into a rescue tool The WhatsApp group was created by engineers before the disaster and was later expanded to include more experts who could help with the rescue operation. The group now has more than 500 members, including engineers, government officials and people familiar with the hydropower projects. They are sharing tunnel layouts, technical drawings and information that can help rescuers understand what lies beneath the damaged sites. In one exchange, a government official asked the group: Can you send me Chilime layout drawings? Within minutes, another member shared drawings of the Chilime hydropower project’s powerhouse and information about its access tunnels. The conversations, reviewed by Reuters, show how engineers are providing real-time guidance to teams working at the disaster sites. Rescuers search buried hydropower tunnels The authorities believe some missing workers may have survived by entering tunnels during the flood. However, reaching these tunnels has become extremely difficult. The flood brought huge amounts of mud, rocks and debris into the valley, covering tunnel entrances and changing the surrounding landscape.
At some locations, debris has also filled parts of the tunnels. At the 22 MW Chilime hydropower plant, rescuers have not yet found anyone alive. However, Nepal’s Independent Power Producers’ Association said at least eight people could still be trapped there. At the Rasuwagadhi hydropower plant, officials estimate that as many as 46 people may be trapped inside. Also read: NASA grew corn in space and discovered something unexpected: How future crops could be grown during long-duration missions

WhatsApp helps rescuers understand tunnel networks Rescue teams at Rasuwagadhi managed to enter around 250 metres into one tunnel before reaching a blockage. They are now trying to find another way inside. Amshu Kiran Shahi, a board member of the Nepal Electricity Authority, said: We are trying to reach there inside again to look for people. A Nepal Electricity Authority manager also said rescue workers had contacted former employees of the hydropower plants through the WhatsApp group to understand the tunnel networks. Technical drawings shared in the group have helped rescuers identify possible routes and locations underground. Oxygen being sent into buried tunnels At the Upper Trishuli 3A hydropower project, rescuers took nearly six days to reach a tunnel because its entrance had been buried. After reaching the area, teams tried to send oxygen through pipes into possible air pockets in the hope that someone could still be trapped inside. Excavators have also been working to remove huge rocks and debris from tunnel entrances so that rescuers can move further underground. Nepal Army spokesperson Raja Ram Basnet explained why the operation is so difficult: This is not a normal closure of tunnels. The flood has changed the structure of some tunnels, while mud, soil, rocks and other debris have accumulated inside. Some workers escaped through the tunnels Not everyone trapped underground during the flood was unable to escape. Jan Jiwan Thakur, a civil engineer at the Upper Trishuli 1 plant, said a colleague warned him about the approaching flood just moments before it arrived. He managed to reach higher ground along with around 100 other people. He recalled: We just ran away towards the hillside and, after two to three minutes when we looked down, everything was gone. The flood had completely covered the office area. He also said he saw dead bodies while making his way through the tunnel. WhatsApp is also helping track missing workers The engineers’ group is being used for more than technical advice. Members have also shared the names and phone numbers of missing workers with government officials. The information is being passed to telecom authorities in an attempt to identify the last recorded locations of some missing people. The approach could give rescuers another way to determine where workers may have been when the flood struck. Also read: 1 almond’s water equals to 38,000 ChatGPT queries says Sam: What does comparison mean, and how much water does AI data centre actually use

Families still waiting for answers While rescue teams continue searching, families of missing workers are waiting for news. Rajesh Shrestha is among those hoping his 30-year-old son, Rajish, an environmental engineer at Upper Trishuli 1, will return home. Shrestha said: Whenever I look outside, I imagine seeing him carrying a bag and coming home, just as he used to. He added: I am surviving on the hope that he will return. The disaster has caused widespread destruction across the Trishuli valley and damaged several hydropower projects. As rescuers continue digging through the wreckage, a simple WhatsApp group has become an important link between engineers with technical knowledge and teams searching for survivors underground.