Koraput: Rescue teams, comprising police, fire personnel, and ODRAF, on Monday resumed the operation to trace a 22-year-old YouTuber, who was swept away by strong currents while filming a video at Duduma waterfall in Odisha’s Koraput on Saturday.
The incident took place at around 4.30 pm on Saturday when Sagar Tudu from Berhampur along with fellow YouTuber Abhijit Behera of Cuttack’s Jobra area visited the waterfall to shoot content for his channel
Police stated that Sagar was filming a live video and had ventured into the middle of the stream by jumping across rocks, ignoring his friends’ warnings about rising water levels due to release of floodwaters from Machakunda dam. Despite his friends’ attempts to throw a rope and pull him back, the water level surged from the dam, sweeping him away as the group watched in horror.
The rescue team had recovered a bag with batteries and equipment which Sagar had thrown into the water before being swept away during the search operation on Sunday. “A joint team of ODRAF, fire services from Lamataput and police, assisted by local villagers, resumed the operation on Sunday morning. But till evening we could not locate him. We only recovered a bag containing batteries and other equipment which he had thrown into the water moments before being swept away,” IIC of Machkund police station Madhusudan Bhoi was quoted as saying.
