Telangana tunnel collapse: Trapped close to a month, search ops continue for 7 workers

The search operations to locate seven workers trapped inside the partially collapsed Srisailam Left Bank Canal (SLBC) tunnel are progressing at a brisk pace. From robots to rat miners, the Telangana government has engaged close to a dozen agencies for the rescue operation.

Rescue personnel went inside the partially collapsed tunnel with essential equipment on Sunday to resume the rescue operation. Autonomous hydraulic-powered robots were deployed for the rescue operation on Sunday, utilising it to remove soil at the collapse site. According to authorities, 30 HP capacity liquid ring vacuum pump and a vacuum tank machine are being used to remove soil and other debris faster from inside the tunnel. With the conveyor belt being readied, rescuers are able to remove approximately 620 cubic metres of soil and muck per hour from the tunnel.

Close to 12 agencies including the Army, National Disaster Response Force, State Disaster Response Force, human remains detection dogs (HRDD), state-run miner Singareni Collieries, a Hyderabad-based robotics company, and other agencies are actively involved in the mission. The rescue operation is progressing round-the-clock.

As many as eight workers got trapped inside the SLBC tunnel after the roof of the under-construction tunnel partially collapsed in Nagakarnool, Telangana. The eight workers include four labourers, two operators and two engineers. Rescuers recently recovered the body of Gurpreet Singh, a Tunnel Boring Machine (TBM) operator on March 9. His body was handed over to his family members in Punjab.

The trapped workers include Manoj Kumar (Uttar Pradesh), Sunny Singh (Jammu & Kashmir), Gurpreet Singh (Punjab), and Sandeep Sahu, Jegta Xess, and Anuj Sahu, all from Jharkhand.