HYDERABAD: Telangana tourism minister Jupally Krishna Rao on Saturday said that the rescue teams identified what are believed to be ‘human remains’ in the Srisailam Left Bank Canal tunnel, where eight workers have been trapped since the collapse of the roof on Feb 22. Addressing the media at the tunnel site, the minister said that four human remains were found near the tunnel boring machine (TBM) parts, with another four located in nearby areas.
Massive operation to locate eight missing workers in collapsed tunnel in Telangana
The National Geophysical Research Institute assisted the rescuers with ground penetrating radar to identify these ‘anomalies’ in the tunnel, after marking five critical locations for removal of silt. Minister Krishna Rao said, “We expect the silt removal at these identified sites to be completed by Sunday afternoon.” Once this is done, rescuers may stand a chance to discover the missing workers, sources said. Foul smell emanating from 5 locations The rescuers also came across a strong foul smell emanating from the five locations, where the accumulated silt stands at a height of 9 ft. On Saturday afternoon, he, along with irrigation minister N Uttam Kumar Reddy, chief secretary A Santhi Kumari, and special chief secretary, disaster management, Arvind Kumar, convened a review meeting to assess the progress of the rescue efforts. Rescuers struggle with rising water levels However, the constant surge of water, mixed with large quantities of accumulated silt, became a major hurdle in the rescue operations. SCCL and NDRF personnel, and rat miners struggled with rising water levels while manually removing the accumulated slush. To combat this, three 5 HP motors were deployed for dewatering, and the slush was transported by locomotives outside the tunnel. Arvind Kumar told TOI, “The silt has accumulated to a height of about 1.5 meters to 3 meters. Manual desilting is being carried out round-the-clock. We expect to have clarity on three to four critical sites by Sunday.” Access to the roof collapse site remains blocked Officials also highlighted the vital role of the LoCo, which is used to transport men and materials near the accident site, located approximately 14 km away. The LoCo, which had previously reached only 12 km of the tunnel, is now able to travel up to 13.5 km following the removal of debris from the TBM and cutting. Access to the roof collapse site remains blocked by the large TBM, but the South Central Railway is using ultrathermic cutters to remove the debris. “This process is expected to be completed by Sunday afternoon,” an official said. SCCL officials said the conveyor belt, which loosened four days ago, will be repaired by Sunday afternoon, which would help in transport of broken equipment and other parts inside the tunnel. As the rescue operations intensified, the govt stationed medical teams, ambulances, and oxygen supply units outside the tunnel. Doctors were also on standby on Saturday morning, prepared to provide assistance if needed, for both the trapped workers and rescue team personnel.
