In Telangana, an extensive rescue operation is being carried out to save eight workers trapped inside an under-construction tunnel, after a part of it collapsed. The incident took place early on Saturday, in the Srisailam Left Bank Canal (SLBC) tunnel in Nagarkurnool district near Domalapenta. This occurred only days after work had resumed on the construction site after a lengthy shutdown, prompting questions about safety protocols.
What Happened?
The roof of the tunnel fell in on the 14 km mark, 3 meters of the tunnel roof collapsed, according to reports. While some workers were able to escape, eight are still trapped. Those trapped include engineers, operators and labourers from Uttar Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Punjab, and Jharkhand.
Rescue Operations Come With Difficulties:
Leading the rescue work is the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) being met by serious challenges. Access to the trapped workers is blocked by water and debris. National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) teams have been engaged in water computation and debris removal work, but it is very tiring, he added.
“There’s too much muck inside the tunnel to walk through. They (rescuers) are using rubber tubes and wooden planks to get through it,”
The NDRF has reached quite a distance inside the tunnel with the help of locomotives and conveyor belts. But the last 200 meters toward the collapsed part are fully blocked. That makes it impossible to ascertain the condition or precise location of the workers trapped in the machinery. Efforts to communicate have been unsuccessful due to the debris.
Hope Fading, but Rescue Efforts Continue:
Telangana Minister J Krishna Rao, after visiting the site, expressed concerns about the workers' survival chances, given the conditions inside the tunnel.
Compounding the search, much of the tunnel is filled with water, complicating rescue efforts even further. The NDRF and SDRF teams continue to face difficulty in reaching the collapsed portion as the area had been severely damaged and is filled with knee-deep mud.
Multi-Agency Collaboration:
Moreover, the Engineer Task Force (ETF) of the Indian Army has also joined the rescue operations along with NDRF and SDRF. The Indian Army is in coordination with all agencies to expedite the rescue.
Monitoring and Support:
Several of the trapped workers hail from Jharkhand, and the state government is monitoring the situation.