All eight workers who were buried inside the Srisailam Left Bank Canal (SLBC) tunnel collapse in Telangana have been reported dead, sources from Times Now said. The rescue process, now on its fifth day, has been met with several obstacles amid heavy mud slush within the tunnel. Authorities hope to find one or two bodies by tonight or tomorrow.
The National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), the Task Force of the Army, the MARCOS of the Navy, the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), and specialist rat miners have been working round the clock to clear the debris and retrieve the bodies. The officials said water has been removed, exposing approximately 20 feet of mud slush at the 13.8 km and 6 feet at the 13.4 km. The rescue team thinks the buried workers had probably been driven deeper into the tunnel by the collapse.
Expert Rat Miners Join Rescue Mission
A team of expert rat miners, who assisted earlier in the 2023 Silkyara tunnel collapse rescue operation in Uttarakhand, was part of the mission. One of the rescuers, Munna Qureshi, admitted to the challenges, saying, “Our team rescued 41 workers in Uttarkashi. Here, there is some difficulty, but we will solve the problem. It is a big mission.”
What Happened in the Tunnel?
On Saturday, part of the under-construction SLBC tunnel in Nagarkurnool district caved in, trapping eight labourers, including two engineers. About 50 labourers were in the tunnel when the mishap took place. While 42 labourers escaped, the eight trapped victims were in front of the machinery.
Some workers suffered minor injuries while escaping from the tunnel, according to worker Obi Sahu, who is related to one of the trapped workers.