NEW DELHI - Another day of rescue efforts for the 41 construction workers trapped in a collapsed tunnel in northern India proved to be unsuccessful on Saturday.
Despite their best efforts, rescuers were unable to continue drilling due to a malfunction in their equipment. The drill had broken down late on Friday while trying to break through stones and debris in the collapsed tunnel. This unfortunate setback has brought the entire operation to a standstill.
Arnold Dix, an international expert assisting the rescue team, stated that there is currently no timeline for when drilling can resume. “The machine is unrepairable and has once again been defeated by the mountain,” he explained to reporters.
Replacing the broken drill will be a time-consuming process. The rescuers will have to pull out the damaged machine and bring in a new one before they can begin drilling again. The workers have been trapped for two weeks starting from November 12th when the tunnel they were constructing caved in from a landslide.
Unfortunately, the rocky terrain has made it extremely difficult for the rescuers’ equipment to operate effectively. The drill had already broken twice before while attempting a horizontal approach to reach the trapped workers. After managing to drill 6.5 feet of the required 40 feet of debris, the machine finally shut down.
To facilitate their ongoing efforts to free the workers, the rescuers have inserted pipes into the dug-out channel to act as a passageway. As of now, about 151 feet of pipe have been installed according to Devendra Patwal, a disaster management officer.
In the meantime, a new drilling machine has arrived and is being used for vertical digging. However, this strategy presents its own set of challenges as the rescue team will have to first construct a road to the top of the hill and then dig an additional 338 feet downwards to reach the trapped workers. This is nearly double the distance of the previous horizontal approach.
The trapped workers have not been forgotten and are being provided with essentials such as hot meals and oxygen through separate pipes. Doctors have also been monitoring their physical and mental health. Most of these workers are from different parts of the country and their families have gathered at the accident site, anxiously waiting for their loved ones to be rescued.
The road the workers were constructing was part of a larger project called the Chardham all-weather road. Some experts have expressed concerns over the potential negative effects of this project, believing it will only add to the already fragile conditions in the upper Himalayan region. As the popularity of Uttarakhand’s many Hindu shrines continues to grow, so does the influx of tourists. This has led to an increase in construction and road building, further compromising the already delicate ecosystem.
