Nepal flood survivor’s family relieved at dramatic rescue after 10 days trapped

HONG KONG — After days of waiting anxiously, Lu Haitao’s family could finally breathe a sigh of relief when the Chinese man was rescued from a tunnel in Nepal where devastating floods killed more than 1,300 people.

Rescuers carried out Lu from a 225-meter (740-foot) hydropower tunnel and evacuated him by helicopter Saturday, 10 days after the floods. He was taken to a hospital and was in stable condition, Chinese state broadcaster CCTV reported.

The Aug. 26 floods were likely caused by a glacier collapse and nearly 4,900 remain missing, according to Nepal’s disaster management agency. On the Tibet side of the border, 31 people died and 531 were missing, Chinese official news agency Xinhua reported Friday.

Lu recalled climbing to the highest point inside the tunnel and thinking the whistles he heard from the rescue crews were in his imagination, according to audio shared by CCTV. He told a Chinese embassy staffer that the emergency personnel initially could not hear him when he shouted toward their lights.

“When they shone before my eyes, I couldn’t believe it,” he said. “When they shone before my eyes, I no longer shouted. I had lost hope.”

Lu Hairong, Lu’s sister in China…

Original source: https://www.nbcnews.com/business