Alternative access routes to reach the trapped individuals are being explored to expedite the mission.
Published Feb 27, 2025 | 7:38 PM ⚊ Updated Feb 27, 2025 | 7:38 PM
SLBC tunnel
Synopsis: Doubts have been raised over the chances of survival of the eight men trapped inside the tunnel since Saturday. More than two lakh cubic meters of debris have accumulated between the search teams and the trapped men.
The search and rescue operation at the Srisailam Left Bank Canal (SLBC) tunnel in Telangana gained momentum on Thursday, 27 February, after the Border Roads Organisation (BRO) confirmed the stability of soil at the collapse site.
Eight workers have been trapped in the debris for the past six days ever since a part of the tunnel’s roof collapsed at Domapenta in Telangana’s Nagarkurnool district on Saturday, 22 February morning. Their condition is not known.
After the BRO confirmed the stability, authorities decided to cut through the Tunnel Boring Machine (TBM). The process of dismantling the machine into small pieces using gas cutters began even as the Army, Navy, and NDRF personnel cleared the debris and drained water from the tunnel.
The machine had been the primary obstacle since it was feared that removing it would cause further instability at the collapse site.
“A decision to cut through the TBM has been taken. Earlier, this call was not taken due to the instability of the tunnel and soil. We will cut through the machine, and once the way is cleared, our men will go through the muck and debris to find and rescue the trapped people,” a senior official said.
Supervised by Nagarkurnool District Collector B Santosh and SP Vaibhav Gaikwad, the operation’s primary focus on Thursday was clearing mud up to a distance of two kilometers from the tunnel’s entrance.
The conveyor belt, damaged in the collapse, is being repaired to facilitate faster removal of debris.
Rescue teams have managed to reach within 50 meters of the collapse site. Engineers monitoring the operation have captured images from inside the tunnel, terming the conditions grim.
The likelihood of survival has diminished due to a lack of food and water for the past 125 hours.
“Even if it is assumed that they are getting some air through cavities in the debris, the high humidity and pressure inside make survival extremely difficult,” an irrigation department engineer revealed.
Telangana Irrigation and Civil Supplies Minister N Uttam Kumar Reddy reiterated that the rescue operation is at full intensity and is expected to be completed within two days.
He added that alternative access routes to reach the trapped individuals are being explored to expedite the mission.
“Oxygen is being continuously pumped in. We are using all available resources to ensure the safety of our rescue personnel and to reach the trapped workers as soon as possible,” he said.
According to preliminary estimates, over two lakh cubic meters of debris have accumulated between the search teams and the trapped men.
Acknowledging the scale of the challenge, an engineering official monitoring the site said, “It would be highly impossible to clear it in two days. But it can be managed through a combination of strategies and resources.”
Authorities are considering deploying an additional conveyor belt and using loaders to expedite debris clearance.
With Army, Navy, and NDRF teams working tirelessly, gas-cutting equipment is being used to remove mechanical debris.
The operation was intensified late Wednesday following a high-level meeting attended by tunnel experts from the military and state ministers.
Meanwhile, political tensions escalated over the handling of the crisis. BRS Working President KT Rama Rao criticised Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy for not visiting the collapse site.
“They have just gone in blindly without any due consultation with the GSI or any other engineering department. As a result, today we have risked the lives of eight people who are stuck in there. Nobody knows if they’re alive or dead, but the chief minister is happily indulging in election campaigns and Delhi trips,” he told agencies.
Meanwhile, senior BRS leader T Harish Rao led a protest in Nagarkurnool after the police prevented them from proceeding to the accident site.
“It’s been six days, and yet there has been no breakthrough. Are their lives insignificant for the chief minister?” Harish Rao asked.
(Edited by Majnu Babu).
