Firstpost
  • Home
  • Video Shows
    Vantage Firstpost America Firstpost Africa First Sports
  • World
    US News
  • Explainers
  • News
    India Opinion Cricket Tech Entertainment Sports Health Photostories
  • Asia Cup 2025
Apple Incorporated Modi ji Justin Trudeau Trending

Sections

  • Home
  • Live TV
  • Videos
  • Shows
  • World
  • India
  • Explainers
  • Opinion
  • Sports
  • Cricket
  • Health
  • Tech/Auto
  • Entertainment
  • Web Stories
  • Business
  • Impact Shorts

Shows

  • Vantage
  • Firstpost America
  • Firstpost Africa
  • First Sports
  • Fast and Factual
  • Between The Lines
  • Flashback
  • Live TV

Events

  • Raisina Dialogue
  • Independence Day
  • Champions Trophy
  • Delhi Elections 2025
  • Budget 2025
  • US Elections 2024
  • Firstpost Defence Summit
Trending:
  • PM Modi in Manipur
  • Charlie Kirk killer
  • Sushila Karki
  • IND vs PAK
  • India-US ties
  • New human organ
  • Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale Movie Review
fp-logo
Uttarakhand Silkyara Tunnel Rescue: Digging halted after auger machine breaks, CM Dhami inspects site
Whatsapp Facebook Twitter
Whatsapp Facebook Twitter
Apple Incorporated Modi ji Justin Trudeau Trending

Sections

  • Home
  • Live TV
  • Videos
  • Shows
  • World
  • India
  • Explainers
  • Opinion
  • Sports
  • Cricket
  • Health
  • Tech/Auto
  • Entertainment
  • Web Stories
  • Business
  • Impact Shorts

Shows

  • Vantage
  • Firstpost America
  • Firstpost Africa
  • First Sports
  • Fast and Factual
  • Between The Lines
  • Flashback
  • Live TV

Events

  • Raisina Dialogue
  • Independence Day
  • Champions Trophy
  • Delhi Elections 2025
  • Budget 2025
  • US Elections 2024
  • Firstpost Defence Summit
  • Home
  • India
  • Uttarakhand Silkyara Tunnel Rescue: Digging halted after auger machine breaks, CM Dhami inspects site

Uttarakhand Silkyara Tunnel Rescue: Digging halted after auger machine breaks, CM Dhami inspects site

FP Staff • November 25, 2023, 15:22:39 IST
Whatsapp Facebook Twitter

Rescuers had been working by hand to remove debris after the drilling machine they were using broke down a day earlier while making its way through the debris of rock, stones and metal, but the operation was halted on Saturday.

Advertisement
Subscribe Join Us
Add as a preferred source on Google
Prefer
Firstpost
On
Google
Uttarakhand Silkyara Tunnel Rescue: Digging halted after auger machine breaks, CM Dhami inspects site

Efforts to reach the 41 construction workers trapped in a collapsed tunnel for two weeks faced another setback on Saturday as rescuers who were manually removing debris were forced to halt the operation after a drilling machine broke down while navigating through the debris of rock, stones, and metal. International tunnelling expert Arnold Dix said on Saturday that the auger machine engaged in drilling through the rubble at the Silkyara tunnel to rescue 41 trapped workers has busted. “Augering is finished…the auger is broken, destructed,” he told reporters in Silkyara. The auger machine has been facing repeated obstructions in the rubble in the past few days. When asked about other options such as vertical or manual drilling, he said all options are being explored. “Every door we are opening has its advantages and disadvantages. What we have to ensure is the safety of the rescuers as well as those who are trapped,” he said. The workers have been trapped since Nov. 12 when a landslide caused a portion of the 4.5-kilometer (2.8-mile) tunnel they were building to collapse about 200 meters (650 feet) from the entrance. The mountainous terrain in the area has proven to be a challenge for the drilling machine, which had earlier broken twice as rescue teams attempted to dig horizontally toward the trapped workers. The machine stopped working after it had drilled about 2 meters (6.5 feet) of the last stretch of 12 meters (40 feet) of rock debris that would open a passage for the workers to come out from the tunnel. Rescuers have inserted pipes into the dug-out channel and welded them together to serve as a passageway from where the men would be pulled out on wheeled stretchers. About 46 meters (151 feet) of pipe has been put in so far, according to Devendra Patwal, a disaster management officer. Meanwhile, a new drilling machine used to dig vertically was brought to the accident site Saturday. The vertical dig is seen as an alternative plan to reach the trapped men, and the rescuers have already created an access road to the top of the hill. However, rescue teams will need to dig 103 meters (338 feet) downward to reach the trapped workers — nearly double the distance of the horizontal shaft. Authorities have supplied the trapped workers with hot meals made of rice and lentils through a 6-inch (15-centimeter) pipe after days when they survived on dry food sent through a narrower pipe. Oxygen is being supplied through a separate pipe, and more than a dozen doctors, including psychiatrists, have been at the accident site monitoring their health. Most of the trapped workers are migrant laborers from across the country. Many of their families have traveled to the accident site, where they have camped out for days to get updates on the rescue effort and in hopes of seeing their relatives soon. The tunnel the workers were building was designed as part of the Chardham all-weather road, which will connect various Hindu pilgrimage sites. Some experts say the project, a flagship initiative of the federal government, will exacerbate fragile conditions in the upper Himalayas, where several towns are built atop landslide debris. Large numbers of pilgrims and tourists visit Uttarakhand’s many Hindu temples, with the number increasing over the years due to the continued construction of buildings and roadways.

Tags
rescue operation uttrakhand news Silkyara tunnel Uttarakhand tunnel collapse
End of Article
Latest News
Find us on YouTube
Subscribe
End of Article

Impact Shorts

'New dawn': PM Modi meets Manipur violence victims in first visit since 2023 unrest

'New dawn': PM Modi meets Manipur violence victims in first visit since 2023 unrest

Prime Minister Modi visited Churachandpur, Manipur, meeting displaced people from ethnic clashes. Modi laid foundation stones for 14 development projects worth over ₹7,300 crore in Churachandpur. Opposition criticized Modi's visit as "too little, too late" and questioned its impact on healing wounds.

More Impact Shorts

Top Stories

Russian drones over Poland: Trump’s tepid reaction a wake-up call for Nato?

Russian drones over Poland: Trump’s tepid reaction a wake-up call for Nato?

As Russia pushes east, Ukraine faces mounting pressure to defend its heartland

As Russia pushes east, Ukraine faces mounting pressure to defend its heartland

Why Mossad was not on board with Israel’s strike on Hamas in Qatar

Why Mossad was not on board with Israel’s strike on Hamas in Qatar

Turkey: Erdogan's police arrest opposition mayor Hasan Mutlu, dozens officials in corruption probe

Turkey: Erdogan's police arrest opposition mayor Hasan Mutlu, dozens officials in corruption probe

Russian drones over Poland: Trump’s tepid reaction a wake-up call for Nato?

Russian drones over Poland: Trump’s tepid reaction a wake-up call for Nato?

As Russia pushes east, Ukraine faces mounting pressure to defend its heartland

As Russia pushes east, Ukraine faces mounting pressure to defend its heartland

Why Mossad was not on board with Israel’s strike on Hamas in Qatar

Why Mossad was not on board with Israel’s strike on Hamas in Qatar

Turkey: Erdogan's police arrest opposition mayor Hasan Mutlu, dozens officials in corruption probe

Turkey: Erdogan's police arrest opposition mayor Hasan Mutlu, dozens officials in corruption probe

Top Shows

Vantage Firstpost America Firstpost Africa First Sports

QUICK LINKS

  • Mumbai Rains
Latest News About Firstpost
Most Searched Categories
  • Web Stories
  • World
  • India
  • Explainers
  • Opinion
  • Sports
  • Cricket
  • Tech/Auto
  • Entertainment
  • IPL 2025
NETWORK18 SITES
  • News18
  • Money Control
  • CNBC TV18
  • Forbes India
  • Advertise with us
  • Sitemap
Firstpost Logo

is on YouTube

Subscribe Now

Copyright @ 2024. Firstpost - All Rights Reserved

About Us Contact Us Privacy Policy Cookie Policy Terms Of Use
Home Video Shorts Live TV