Tunnel rescuers to drill manually

WITH THE OPERATION to save 41 construction workers trapped in the under-construction Silkyara-Barkot tunnel entering its 16th day, rescuers have decided to drill through the rest of the debris manually.

- AVANEESH MISHRA

• UTTARAKHAND TUNNEL COLLAPSE DAY 16

So far, the rescue involved drilling through the debris using an auger machine. But with parts of the machine breaking inside the pipes and requiring workers to cut through the metal, rescuers say manually drilling through the rest is the preferred option. The trapped workers are behind 60 metres of debris and rescuers are roughly 12 metres away.

Those called in for the operation are workers familiar with rat-hole mining-a method of extracting coal from narrow, horizontal seams-since they can manoeuvre tight spaces.

They will be accompanied by Army engineers and technical personnel. In case there are obstructions in the form of rock or iron, rescuers plan to use gas cutters and jackhammers.

Jhansi resident Parsadi Lodhi, a rat-hole miner who arrived in Silkyara,said he would enter the rescue pipes and use hand-held tools to dig through the remaining debris. "I have been doing this for the last 10 years in Delhi and Ahmedabad.

But the work to rescue trapped people will be a first for me...