The rescue operations of the eight trapped workers at the Telangana’s Srisailam Left Bank Canal (SLBC) tunnel is underway in the Nagarkurnool district. Officials involved in the rescue operation have stated that the last 200 meters of the collapsed section are blocked by debris, making it difficult to confirm the condition or exact location of the trapped workers.
The early morning visuals show that the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) is making progress and advancing into the tunnel. Furthermore, the response force is currently working to remove the accumulated water inside the tunnel.
NDRF Deputy Commandant Sukhendu Datta said the force had covered around 13.5 kilometres inside the tunnel, primarily using locomotives and conveyor belts. He added, “Yesterday around 10 pm, we went inside to check what the situation was like. The locomotives were used to enter the tunnel. From the gate of the tunnel, we covered a total of around 13.5 km. We covered 11 km by train and then the rest of 2 km by conveyor belt and by walking.”
“We had reached till the end of the Tunnel Boring Machine (TBM). We shouted and tried to get any reply from the trapped workers but unfortunately we could not know anything because there is a patch of around 200 meters which is filled with debris. Till the debris is cleared we cannot know the exact location of the victims,” the NDRF deputy commandant said.
“The patch between 11 to 13 km is filled with water, so right now, we are in the process of removing the water. When that is done, we will start the rescue operations,” the official added.
Earlier, both the NDRF and SDRF teams encountered severe challenges in reaching the collapsed section.
“There’s no chance to go to the spot inside the tunnel. It has completely collapsed and mud is reaching up to the knees. We will have to take another step,” an SDRF official said.
On the morning of Saturday, a three-meter section of the roof of an under-construction stretch of the SLBC tunnel caved in at the 14 km mark near Domalapenta in Nagarkurnool district, Telangana. This incident occurred four days after the construction work had resumed after a long halt. Following the collapse, some workers escaped, but eight are still trapped.
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