‘Please get us out quickly,’ trapped workers scream for help; Images from the surface of the Uttarkashi Silkyara Tunnel
Uttarkashi Tunnel Collapse: Rescue team makes contact with workers as they shout for help and ask the team to ‘please eliminate us quickly’. Images have also emerged of the trapped workers from inside the collapsed tunnel.
New Delhi: In a major breakthrough, the rescue team worked to evacuate the 41 workers trapped in the Collapse of the Uttarakhand Tunnel, was able to make contact with the trapped workers. On November 12, 2023, the Silkyara Tunnel in Uttarkashi, which was under construction, had collapsed and unfortunately 41 workers were left trapped under the rubble. It’s been nine days and today is the tenth day, and the workers are still under the rubble, waiting to be evacuated. In addition to excerpts from the conversation the workers had with a government representative, images of the workers from the tunnel have also emerged. Read on for the latest update on the ongoing rescue operations.
‘Please get us out quickly,’ trapped workers shout for help
According to a report by Times Of India, he had a conversation with Uttar Pradesh government representative Arun Kumar, which clearly revealed their plight and suffering over the past ten days. TOI quoted a jailed worker from UP, Akhilesh Kumar, as saying, “We are getting food, but we are all in a bad condition. What is the status of the rescue work? Please get us out quickly. It gets harder and harder every day.” Ram Sundar, another worker, said: “Tell our families not to worry and take care of themselves.”
Interior images of trapped workers from the Silkyara Tunnel
The rescue team has managed to make contact with the 41 workers who were trapped in the collapsed tunnel for nine days. ANI shared the first images of the trapped workers coming forward as the rescue team tries to contact them; the endoscopic flexi camera reached the trapped workers.
Vertical drilling machine at the accident site for rescue operations
To rescue the trapped workers, a vertical drill was brought to the accident site as the team failed to remove the workers from the accident using a horizontal machine. The vertical boring machine reached the Silkyara Tunnel from the upper part of the hill above the tunnel and is used for the rescue operations.
A video showing a pipeline being laid in the Silkyara Tunnel for better communication with the trapped workers has also been shared on the internet.
Employees were given khichdi in bottles
Nine days after being trapped in the collapsed tunnel in Uttarkashi, the workers were given bottled khichdi and fruits to help them survive until the rescue operation was completed. Hemant, the cook who prepared the Khichdi for the trapped workers, said this was the first time a hot meal was sent to the workers. “This food is sent into the tunnel. It is the first time that a hot meal is sent. We send Khichdi. We only prepare the food recommended to us,” he said.
Rescue operation leader Colonel Deepak Patil said we can send food, mobile phones and chargers into the tunnel through this alternate lifeline. About the food items to be sent to the trapped workers, he said that keeping in mind the condition of the workers, a list of available food options has been prepared with the help of doctors. “We are bringing wide mouth plastic cylindrical bottles so that we can send bananas, apples, Khichdi and Daliya,” he added.