Express News Service
TAPOVAN: The rescue teams at Tapovan have started widening a hole drilled into an approach tunnel on the way to the possible location of over 37 people trapped inside the tunnel of the NTPC’s hydel project.
After drilling the tunnel ground 12 meter deep and 75mm in diameter, the NTPC began widening it to almost one foot which is estimated to take 8 more hours. The NTPC has decided to increased the diameter of the hole to reach the Silt Flushing Tunnel where the men are suspected to be trapped, said Ravinath Raman, commissioner of Garhwal division of Uttarakhand.
The layout was never an issue. We have it from the beginning.
TNIE has already reported how the rescue team is racing against time to save the trapped men.
It is notable that the right information helped the rescue team save 12 men trapped in another tunnel on Sunday itself in an operation that spanned for over 6 hours.
The video shared by the ITBP went viral as the man danced his way out gesturing Balle Balle as he was being rescued.
Piyoosh Rautela, executive director, Uttarakhand Disaster Mitigation and Management Center (DMMC) commenting on the issue said, The rescue team is working on the very spot where the men are trapped since the very beginning. It doesn t matter if they had the layout or not. Also, tunnel rescue is altogether a different game. Rescue during earthquake, flood and landslide is different while tunnel rescue is more difficult.