Uttarakhand Tunnel Collapse: Rescuers Around 5 Metres Away From Trapped Workers As Manual Drilling Progresses, Breakthrough Expected Soon

The manual drilling operations by a group of "rat-hole miners" began yesterday (27 November) in an attempt to rescue the 41 workers trapped in the debris of the collapsed Silkyara tunnel in Uttarkashi, Uttarakhand. This development occurred as the rescue operations entered seventeenth day.

A group of 24 experienced "rat-hole mining" experts are engaged in the manual drilling process, carving a narrow pathway towards the confined workers. This labor-intensive task involves the removal of rubble and the construction of a secure route for the rescue mission.

Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami has said that the team working to rescue the 41 workers trapped inside the Silkyara-Barkot tunnel in Uttarakhand’s Uttarkashi is just five metres away from the men.

He added that the rescuers have dug through 52 metres of debris.

The rescue team is a mere 5 metres away from the workers.

"Almost 52 metres has been done (pipe inserted). It is expected that there will be a breakthrough around 57 metres. 1 metre of the piple was pushed in before me, if 2 metres more of it is pushed in it will be around 54 metres in. After that, one more pipe will be used in...Earlier steel girders were found (during drilling), this has reduced now. Right now, we are finding more of concrete, it is being cut with cutter," CM Dhami said.

The manual drilling operations commenced after the auger machine got stuck in the rubble on Friday and had to be pulled out.

This led to the authorities exploring other alternatives such as vertical drilling from above the tunnel. So far, about 40 per cent of the necessary 86-meter vertical drilling has been successfully completed.

By Monday evening, the final piece of the jammed auger had been extracted, paving the way for a steel pipe to be inserted further into the partially completed rescue tunnel. Once fixed, the 25-tonne machine will push an 800-mm pipe in sync with the ongoing manual drilling.

Rescue authorities played down concerns regarding the ability of the workers to maneuver through the pipes with an 800-millimeter diameter, emphasising their previous experience with 600-millimeter pipes. For safety measures, each worker will be outfitted with a helmet, uniform, mask, and glasses.

Lt Gen (retd) Syed Ata Hasnain, a member of the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), said that the vertical drilling operation has reached a depth of 36 metres.

The ongoing rescue efforts to save the trapped workers is expected to present further challenges due to a predicted rainfall and a temperature drop to 4 degrees Celsius.

The trapped workers, confined in a 2-km constructed area, now have a landline connection established through a pipe for communication with the outside world. A team of doctors positioned at the tunnel site communicates with these workers twice daily, from 9 am to 11 am and 5 pm to 8 pm.

"We have to complete this relief and rescue operation with a lot of alertness. Nature is continuously giving us challenges in this effort. But, we are standing firm. We are making efforts round-the-clock. We have to pray for the safe evacuation of those workers and to do it as early as possible," Prime Minister Narendra Modi said yesterday.

PK Mishra, the Principal Secretary to PM Modi, visited the tunnel yesterday to oversee rescue efforts. He was joined by Uttarakhand Chief Secretary Sukhbir Singh Sandhu. Mishra assured to provide all necessary assistance from the central government to the rescue teams.

The Silkyara tunnel, which is a crucial component of the central government's ambitious Char Dham all-weather road project, is situated approximately 30 km from Uttarkashi and requires a seven-hour drive from Dehradun.