At least eight workers are still trapped in Telangana’s Srisailam Left Bank Canal (SLBC) tunnel which collapsed on Saturday, February 22. Rescue operations to evacuate the trapped workers are still underway.
The National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) is making progress and advancing more into the tunnel, reported ANI. On Saturday morning, a three-meter section of the roof of an under-construction stretch of the SLBC tunnel collapsed at the 14 km mark near Domalapenta in Nagarkurnool district in Telangana.
– The rescue operation has entered the third day. Minister Jupally Krishna Rao is at the spot and monitoring the developments.
– The NDRF is currently working to remove the accumulated water inside the tunnel.
– Due to debris blocking the area, the team has not yet been able to confirm their exact ‘location’, as confirmed by NDRF officials told ANI.
– As per the NDRF Deputy Commandant Sukhendu Datta, the force had covered around 13.5 kilometres inside the tunnel, primarily using locomotives and conveyor belts. “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,” Datta told ANI.
– The last 200 meters of the collapsed section are completely blocked by debris, making it difficult to confirm the condition or exact location of the trapped workers, as per the official.
– The tunnel area was filled with water, due to which the rescue operation is becoming difficult. “The patch between the 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 told the news agency.
– Earlier today, 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.
