Uttarakhand: CM Dhami to visit Uttarkashi tunnel collapse site today
Nov 13, 2023
Dehradun (Uttarakhand) [India], November 13 : Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami will visit Uttarkashi today where 40 people are trapped after an under-construction tunnel collapsed on Sunday.
CM Dhami will conduct an on-site inspection of the incident from a tunnel near Silkyara and will review the relief and rescue operations.
Heavy excavator machines have been mobilized to remove the debris. Workers trapped in the tunnel have been contacted through walkie-talkies.
At present all the workers are said to be safe. Oxygen is being supplied through the pipeline laid for supplying water in the tunnel. Through this pipeline, packets of grams have been sent to the workers trapped in the tunnel at night under pressure through a compressor. The rescue operation has been going on all night and is still going on.
Rescuers say the teams still have to clear about 35 metres of debris more to reach the location of the 40 trapped workers. The rescuers believe they can accomplish this by the evening and evacuate the trapped workers.
Prashant Kumar, Circle Officer of Uttarkashi told ANI "The debris is about 60 meters deep. As we are clearing the debris, it is falling from above. The present situation is, that yesterday we established communication with the people trapped inside the tunnel. We have moved around 15 metres inside the tunnel, and around 35 metres are still to be covered. Everyone is safe, we have provided oxygen and water to them. We are making our way sideways to go inside the tunnel. After establishing communication, around 40 people are trapped inside."
Karamveer Singh, NDRF Assistant Commander said that plaster had been done for 200 meters from the starting point of the tunnel but there was no plaster beyond that, which became the main reason for this collapse.
"Since yesterday, 10-15 meters more excavation has been done. People trapped inside have been given food and water. By this evening, we will make every effort to ensure that all these people come out safely. There are 40 people inside and all of them are safe. Plaster has been done for 200 meters from the starting point of the tunnel but there is no plaster beyond that, hence it has suddenly subsided. When the machines are working, debris is falling from above, which is causing some trouble," he said.
