With uncertain conditions and severe debris blocking their path, the outlook for survival remains grim.
Hopes Dwindle for Rescued Workers After Tunnel Collapse in Telangana
Hopes Dwindle for Rescued Workers After Tunnel Collapse in Telangana
Desperate rescue efforts continue to find eight workers trapped in a collapsed irrigation tunnel.
Efforts are ongoing to rescue eight workers who have been trapped for several days in a collapsed tunnel in Telangana, India. Authorities have declared that hopes for their survival are diminishing after a sudden rush of silt and water caused the ceiling to collapse on Saturday. The workers were involved in the Srisailam Left Bank Canal tunnel project, a long-term initiative aiming to construct one of the world's largest irrigation tunnels, which has faced numerous setbacks since its commencement in 2005. On the tragic morning of the accident, the group was located approximately nine miles into the tunnel when the collapse occurred, blocking their escape route with a tunnel-boring machine.
Manoj Gaur, chairman of Jaiprakash Associates, the construction firm managing the project, described the scene: "Water gushed in and the roof caved in. The tunnel is enormous, exceeding a diameter of 10 meters. Picture most of that height now filled with water, rock, and mud." Since the incident, rescuers have been unable to establish contact with the trapped workers, and their current conditions remain unknown despite ongoing efforts. A coalition of nine rescue agencies, including the Indian Army and Marine Commandos, is collaborating on the rescue operation, with members who successfully saved 41 trapped workers in a similar incident in 2023 in Uttarakhand.
Jupally Krishna Rao, a Telangana government minister overseeing the response, expressed concern over the survivors' chances, stating, "I can’t predict the chances of survival, but they are not very favorable. However, we will exhaust all efforts, even at the slightest possibility of saving them." As of Monday morning, rescuers had reached the blockage created by the tunnel-boring machine, but progress was severely hindered by accumulation of debris and silt, which in places reached six to seven feet high.
Manoj Gaur, chairman of Jaiprakash Associates, the construction firm managing the project, described the scene: "Water gushed in and the roof caved in. The tunnel is enormous, exceeding a diameter of 10 meters. Picture most of that height now filled with water, rock, and mud." Since the incident, rescuers have been unable to establish contact with the trapped workers, and their current conditions remain unknown despite ongoing efforts. A coalition of nine rescue agencies, including the Indian Army and Marine Commandos, is collaborating on the rescue operation, with members who successfully saved 41 trapped workers in a similar incident in 2023 in Uttarakhand.
Jupally Krishna Rao, a Telangana government minister overseeing the response, expressed concern over the survivors' chances, stating, "I can’t predict the chances of survival, but they are not very favorable. However, we will exhaust all efforts, even at the slightest possibility of saving them." As of Monday morning, rescuers had reached the blockage created by the tunnel-boring machine, but progress was severely hindered by accumulation of debris and silt, which in places reached six to seven feet high.
