Uttarakhand Tunnel Collapse: There’s a piece of good news from the under-construction Silkyara tunnel in Uttarakhand’s Uttarkashi district in which 41 workers have been trapped since 11 November. According to the latest reports received on Wednesday evening, the distance between the rescue team and the workers is just about 12 metres as this portion is filled with rock and debris. Rescue officials racing to save them said that “big news” was expected around midnight after the American-made drill bored another six metres into the hillside.
The National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) personnel have entered the tunnel and ambulances are on standby to take them to a 41-bed makeshift hospital in Chinyalisour.
“I am happy to announce we have been able to move forward by another six meters. It is expected that in the next two hours, when we prepare for the next phase, we will be able to (finish) the remaining work,” said Bhaskar Khulbe, the Special Officer deputed to the Uttarakhand Tourism Department while addressing the media.
Earlier on Wednesday, Mahmood Ahmed, a senior official with Uttarakhand’s Road and Transport Department, said the auger (or earth drilling machine) that was switched on at 12.45 am had drilled 18 metres so far.
“I am very happy to share that drilling for 39 metres has been completed. Estimates indicate the workers are trapped 57 metres underground, so only 18 metres are left,” said Mahmood Ahmed adding that the most time-consuming process in a rescue attempt, which is now on its 11th day, is the welding of pipes to be pushed into the drilled holes to provide workers’ an escape route.
“Welding is most important. This takes time. It does not take much time to drill. Due to this it has taken almost 15 hours, from late night, to send 18 metres of pipes, i.e., three sections,” he added.
“An additional 800mm pipe has also been pushed 21 metres inside the tunnel. If there are no obstacles, some big news may be received tonight or tomorrow morning. An iron rod has also come with the debris. We are happy this (rod) did not create any problems for us.”
“This is very happy news for us, that we are moving forward at a fast pace,” he added.
Meanwhile, the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting on Tuesday issued an advisory to television channels to refrain from sensationalizing the ongoing rescue operation underway at Silkyara, Uttarakhand, and from undertaking any live posts/videos from the close proximity of the tunnel site where the rescue operations are underway, and ensure that the human life-saving activity by the various agencies is in no way disrupted or disturbed by the very presence of cameramen, reporters or equipment near or around the operations site.
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