SILKYARA, India: Rescuers are trying to send cooked food and set up a phone connection to 41 workers trapped for eight days in a collapsed tunnel in the Indian Himalayas as they explore fresh rescue plans after previous attempts stalled, officials said on Monday.
The men have been stuck in the highway tunnel in Uttarakhand state since it caved in early on Nov. 12 and are safe, authorities said. They have access to light and supplies of oxygen, dry food, water and medicines are being sent via a pipe.
Authorities expect that a second, 6-inch pipeline being drilled into the debris for delivery of cooked food will soon be ready, with 42 meters out of an estimated 60 meters already completed, said Bhaskar Khulbe, officer on special duty for the tunnel project.
“Our priority is to save 41 lives who are trapped inside the tunnel. Through this (pipeline) we will be able to send necessary things to them,” federal Road Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari told reporters on Sunday.
Officials are also considering setting up an optical fiber connection through this pipeline, Gadkari added, which can be used insert a camera or phone connection into the tunnel to help workers speak to their families.
The men currently receive nuts, puffed rice, chickpeas and other dry food items via a pipe and the district chief medical officer R.C.S. Panwar said three of them have complained of dysentery.
Rescuers are exploring five new plans to pull out the workers after a machine drilling horizontally into the debris, to create space for the men to come out, developed a snag and a sudden “cracking sound” during efforts to restart it caused panic.
The new plans include drilling vertically from the top of the mountain, which rescuers hope can start by Tuesday as they await arrival of machinery, said Jasvant Kapoor, a general manager at state-run company SJVN, which is involved in the rescue efforts.
Authorities have not said what caused the 4.5-km tunnel to cave in, but the region is prone to landslides, earthquakes and floods.
Fifty to 60 workers were on the overnight shift at the time of the collapse, and those near the exit got out of the tunnel on the national highway that is part of the Char Dham Hindu pilgrimage route.
Rescuers drill to send more food to trapped workers in Indian tunnel
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Rescuers drill to send more food to trapped workers in Indian tunnel
- The 41 workers have been stuck in the highway tunnel in Uttarakhand state since it caved in early on November 12
- Rescuers are exploring five new plans to pull out the workers after a machine drilling into the debris developed a snag
Debris removal steps up at Karachi fire-hit plaza as death toll nears 60
- KMC teams remove debris under safety precautions as search for the missing continues
- Authorities are keeping agencies on alert amid rain forecast as the site remains unstable
ISLAMABAD: Municipal and rescue teams stepped up debris removal operations at a fire-hit shopping plaza in Pakistan’s largest city of Karachi on Wednesday, as officials said the death toll from the blaze has climbed to nearly 60 and the search for missing victims continues.
Teams from the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC) are clearing rubble from Gul Plaza, a multi-story shopping complex where a fire broke out late Saturday, under strict safety measures, with debris being transported to a designated ground in the city’s Meva Shah area, an official statement said.
“Rescue teams are continuously engaged in search and clearance operations to locate any remaining victims,” the statement circulated by the KMC said, adding that authorities were aiming to complete the process as soon as possible while ensuring safety.
Located in Karachi’s densely populated Saddar district, the fire at Gul Plaza burned for more than 24 hours before being brought under control. The blaze gutted more than 1,200 shops, triggered partial structural collapse and left dozens of people trapped inside.
With rain forecast in the coming days, authorities have placed all relevant departments on alert and are making contingency preparations to prevent further risks at the site, the KMC statement said.
The disaster at the shopping mall has renewed scrutiny of fire safety standards in Karachi’s commercial buildings, where overcrowding, illegal construction and weak enforcement have repeatedly contributed to deadly incidents.
Following the Gul Plaza fire, the Sindh Building Control Authority has warned developers and building owners to address fire safety violations or face legal action.
Deadly fires remain a recurring threat in the city of more than 20 million people, despite periodic crackdowns ordered after major disasters.
