2023-11-28 10:14:41
The lengthy rescue operation to rescue 41 construction workers from a collapsed road tunnel in India is apparently on the verge of a breakthrough. The rescue workers, who are now digging by hand, are now only five meters away from the buried victims, the head of government of the state of Uttarakhand, Pushkar Singh Dhami, told reporters on site on Tuesday. A breakthrough is expected “soon”.
“The escape route has been prepared up to 52 meters in the tunnel and the breakthrough will occur at 57 meters,” Puskar Singh Dhami further said. The rescue operation is “expected to be completed soon”. He initially did not give a specific time frame.
On Monday, the local government leader promised that all workers would be rescued. On Monday, the rescue teams were only nine meters away from the trapped construction workers. With the help of a special drill, they quickly pushed through tons of earth and rubble and had laid a steel pipe through which the trapped people could crawl to freedom. But then the drill hit thick metal beams and buried construction vehicles and broke.
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On Monday they wanted to try to use a hand drill to reach those who had been trapped for more than two weeks. At the same time, work was underway on a vertical shaft and an access from the other end of the tunnel. Time is of the essence: the northern Himalayan state of Uttarakhand is now experiencing bitter cold.
The tunnel partially collapsed early in the morning of November 12th during shift change. Fortunately, all construction workers survived the accident. The authorities had assured several times that it would not be long before everyone trapped was rescued.
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