Hyderabad: Six days after a portion of a tunnel in Telangana’s Nagarkurnool collapsed, efforts to rescue eight trapped workers continue.
The South Central Railway (SCR) on Friday joined the rescue operation at the Srisailam Left Bank Canal (SLBC) site.
Rescue teams had cleared most of the tunnel within three days, covering 13.79 km out of 13.85 km. The last section is proving to be difficult to access because of water and slush accumulation at the collapse site.
A team of 20 from NDRF, SDRF and Rat Miners reached the final section of the tunnel but encountered heavy debris.
Railway teams have brought special equipment to help remove metal debris. A boring machine is being used to cut through the tunnel. Plasma cutters, strong shutters and other machines are also being utilised to clear the debris.
“District Collector of Nagarkurnool sought the help of South Central Railway in rescue operation by clearing iron and steel debris that have been hindering rescue work at the site,” SCR Chief Public Relations Officer A Sridhar was quoted as saying by PTI.
He stated that the railways has expertise in cutting heavy metals using tools like plasma cutters and Broco cutting machines.
SCR have sent two teams of metal-cutting experts.
A rescue team entered the tunnel on Friday morning while dewatering efforts were also underway.
Trapped workers from 4 states
The trapped workers have been identified as Manoj Kumar and Sri Niwas from Uttar Pradesh, Sunny Singh from Jammu & Kashmir, Gurpreet Singh from Punjab, and Sandeep Sahu, Jegta Xess, Santosh Sahu, and Anuj Sahu from Jharkhand.
Even as their families wait for the return of eight trapped workers, no contact has been possible with them so far.
Kalwan Singh, a relative of one of the trapped workers Gurpreet, told ANI, “I am the uncle of Gurpreet Singh. We request the government rescue Gurpreet and all the other men trapped inside the tunnel. He is the sole breadwinner of his family. We came here yesterday. The company took us inside, and they have assured us that all will be rescued safely.”
Gurpreet has been working with the company for 20 years.
Telangana minister Uttam Kumar Reddy said that officials have devised a foolproof plan to reduce risks for rescuers while also speeding up the operation.
“A multi-agency rescue operation is in full swing at the Srisailam Left Bank Canal (SLBC) tunnel, with the country’s best experts and advanced equipment deployed to save the trapped workers,” the minister posted on X.
“We assessed the situation and found that rescuers themselves were at great risk while trying to save the trapped workers. After careful evaluation yesterday and today, we have now created a concrete plan to minimize risks and move forward efficiently. We will now proceed at a faster pace to rescue the survivors and complete all relief operations within two days,” he added.
Some experts are not sure whether the trapped workers are alive, without food or water for almost a week.
