By November 20, 2023
NEW DELHI – Uttarakhand tunnel rescue operation latest update: Rescue teams involved in the Uttarakhand tunnel rescue operation are now racing against time to save the 41 construction workers trapped under debris for nearly 175 hours. The rescuers will now try to drill a hole on top of the hill under which the construction workers are trapped inside debris of the collapsed tunnel.
According to reports the rescue work is likely to take 4-5 days more as efforts to drill a horizontal hole using American auger machine didn’t yield the desired results. The rescue work had to be stopped following a fresh collapse of a boulder yesterday.
The extended confinement under the debris of the collapsed tunnel has also raised the safety concerns about the trapped workers who have limited food, water, and oxygen. The trapped workers are communicating with the rescue teams outside but the latest status of their health is not clearly known.
However, the supply of the necessary medicine and food has not halted. A new auger machine has also reportedly brought to the site but it didn’t start drilling due to fears of more damage to the tunnel after of loud cracks were heard on Saturday.
The new plan to create an alternative escape route involves drilling a vertical hole on the top of the hill under which the tunnel is located. They will drill from a pre-identified spot to the depth of slightly over 100 meters to reach the trapped workers.
The 41 construction workers are trapped under the debris after the tunnel collapsed on November 12. Since then, authorities are making all the possible efforts to rescue them.
A team of experts that were involved in the rescue of children trapped inside a Thailand cave is also said to be involved in the operation.
