A Chinese national who had been trapped for 10 days in northern Nepal following the August 26 mudslide was rescued from a tunnel on Saturday.

According to Nepal's prime minister's office, rescuers saved the Chinese national from a 225-meter tunnel at the Trishuli Hydropower Project, which was in an area affected by the mudslide.

The rescued man recalled that while waiting to be rescued, he saw light multiple times and "called out loudly" every time to attract attention. However, the rescuers were not able to hear him, according to CMG reports.

When the rescuers finally approached and he could see the light in front of him, he could not believe it, the rescued man said.

After receiving on-site medical checks, he was transferred to a hospital in Kathmandu, Nepal's capital, for further evaluation. Chinese Ambassador to Nepal Zhang Maoming later visited him at the hospital.

Death toll and rescue efforts

As of Friday evening, 31 people had been confirmed dead and 531 others remained missing after the mudslide struck Gyirong Port on the China-Nepal border in southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, according to the local emergency response and rescue command center.

Nepal Police reported that the death toll had risen to 1,344, with another 4,898 still missing, as of 5 p.m. on Saturday.

With heavy machinery now able to access the central location hit by the mudslide, rescue workers are carrying out precise search operations with the help of professional equipment.

The core affected area at Gyirong Port, which covers approximately 54,000 square meters, has been divided into seven sectors, with rescue teams prioritizing the clearing of key areas such as the joint inspection building, dormitories and the parking lot.

Norbu Tsering, deputy secretary of the Xigaze Municipal Committee of the Communist Party of China, said more than 2,300 people and 8,800 pieces of equipment have been deployed for search and rescue operations in the central affected area, which now has full access to electricity and communications services.

More than 100 experts and technical personnel from departments overseeing natural resources and water conservancy have also been working at the site, along with professional equipment to provide further technical support.

China strengthens disaster monitoring

An article published in Nature on Wednesday highlighted the urgent need to upgrade future monitoring and forecasting systems.

According to Manoochehr Shirzaei, a geophysicist at Virginia Tech, traditional ground-monitoring technologies have noticeable limitations in tackling emerging climate-driven geological risks.

Shirzaei suggested the use of "a regional satellite-based system that routinely searches for accelerating glacier and rock-slope deformation and then connects that information directly to downstream flood and avalanche modeling."

On this front, China is already stepping up its meteorological support for Nepal following the mudslide disaster, providing satellite data and meteorological services to assist with cross-border disaster monitoring and emergency response, according to the China Meteorological Administration (CMA).

Read more: China delivers customized MAZU system to Nepal for meteorological support

The administration has been providing Nepal with a range of meteorological products through MAZU, China's AI-powered meteorological early warning solution, including multi-source satellite data and products from the Fengyun-3 and Fengyun-4 meteorological satellite series.

Meanwhile, China's National Satellite Meteorological Center has continued to monitor precipitation and weather changes in the disaster-affected areas. China has also used high-resolution satellite data to track upstream ice-rock avalanche areas and river channels, supporting disaster assessment, rescue and meteorological services.

Experts on rescue challenges 

While Chinese rescue teams have already fully reopened the only land route to Gyirong Port, they are still facing difficult conditions in the disaster area.

Winston Chang, former global lead of the UN International Search and Rescue Advisory Group, pointed out that the unique geological aftermath of glacial mudslides creates enormous operational hurdles, even for well-equipped rescue forces such as China's.

Powerful glacial mudslides can sweep buildings and debris several kilometers downstream, completely altering the original terrain. Rescuers face great uncertainty over what lies beneath layers of deep, fluid mud and mixed rock fragments, Chang explained.

He added that the unstable terrain creates a "logistical nightmare" for on-site operations.

Read more: International experts explain rescue challenges at mudslide-hit China-Nepal border

Akhilesh Surjan, a specialist in humanitarian and disaster emergency management at Australia's Charles Darwin University, also noted that the ongoing rainfall, poor visibility, fragile mountain slopes and frequent secondary geological hazards constitute compound risks that threaten rescue personnel and slow down operational progress.

Following the mudslide, people have donated more than 660 million yuan (about $98.3 million) for disaster relief, according to China's Ministry of Civil Affairs, with over 147 million people participating in online donations. 

(With input from agenices)