Telangana tunnel collapse
The rescue operation to save eight persons trapped inside the Srisailam Left Bank Canal (SLBC) project tunnel following its roof collapse on Saturday morning is in progress but there is no breakthrough even in contacting or communicating with the trapped persons till Sunday morning.
A joint rescue team formed with about 300 members comprising personnel from the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), Army, National Highways & Infrastructure Development Corporation Ltd (NHIDCL), Singareni Collieries and the SDRF reached 11 km inside the tunnel with the help of the train that ferries the workforce and other material and brings out excavated material.
Rescuers to clear the debris
From there a few NDRF personnel could walk further inside and reached till 200 meters distance from the accident spot. They had reached beyond a portion of the tunnel boring machine (TBM) with great difficulty by foot and explained the condition there – piled up muck and debris blocking the way further inside.
A team of two-dozen Army engineers team from Secunderabad is also reaching the SLBC tunnel accident site to participate in the rescue operation.
According to the Deputy Commandant of NDRF Sukhendu Datta, who is leading the rescue operation, there was a lot of water and large quantities of muck mixed with water and other debris. They were focusing on dewatering the tunnel and removal of muck and other debris to speed up the rescue work by dismantling the inner part of the TBM to reach the accident spot.
NDRF personnel from Silkyara tunnel collapse incident expected to join
He stated that the NDRF personnel who had participated in the rescue operation of the Barkot Silkyara tunnel collapse incident occurred in November 2023 were expected to reach the SLBC tunnel site later in the day. Looking at the situation inside, the rescue operation could take a long time, he assessed.
According to the irrigation department officials, the TBM was pushed about 80 meters backwards with the impact of the collapse of the tunnel. Minister for Excise and Tourism Jupally Krishna Rao camping at Domalapenta near the accident site said there was no human error in the accident
Meanwhile, Chief Engineer V. Ajay Kumar stated that they had resumed the work only after arrest the seepages with grouting of tunnel roof and side wall with about 300 tonnes cement-concrete mixed with polyurethane and other chemicals but the unfortunate incident occurred with seepage in the portion that had no seepage when the work was resumed on February 18.
