7 killed, 3 missing after debris, water enter tunnel in Uttarakhand

Seven workers were killed and three remain missing after debris and water entered an under-construction tunnel at the Vishnugad-Pipalkoti hydropower project in Uttarakhand's Chamoli district. Specialist teams are racing to rescue those trapped 1.8 km inside amid continuous rainfall

Gopeshwar: Specialist rescue teams on Friday raced against time to reach the three people who went missing after debris and water entered a tunnel under construction at a hydroelectric project site in Uttarakhand’s Chamoli district, killing seven people.

Twenty-two people were trapped inside the three-kilometre tunnel when the water rushed in around 7 pm on Thursday, according to District Disaster Management Officer N K Joshi. The incident occurred at the Tehri Hydro Development Corporation’s (THDC) Vishnugad-Pipalkoti hydroelectric project in Mayapur (Pipalkoti), when landslides and subsidence caused debris and water to fill half of the tunnel, trapping the workers inside.

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A report released by the State Emergency Operations Centre on Friday said 19 workers were pulled out of the tunnel during the relief and rescue operation that continued throughout Thursday night. Of these, seven people were dead, and 12 others were injured.

A search is underway for the remaining three workers, whom authorities suspect are trapped 1.8 kilometres inside the tunnel. Authorities have deployed machines to remove debris and pump out water to reach the missing workers, even as the continuous rainfall is rendering the operation difficult. Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami visited Pipalkoti on Friday and reviewed the relief and rescue operations. He also visited the 12 injured workers admitted to a hospital in Chamoli.

Officials said the deceased were identified as Pradeep Panwar (31), a resident of Tehri Garhwal; Mukesh Singh, a resident of Chamoli; Durga Sharma, Vijay Hansda and Jitendra Kumar, residents of Uttar Pradesh; and Lokeshwar and Bhuneshwar, residents of Chhattisgarh.

The missing persons have been identified as Lucas Topno, a resident of Jharkhand, and Chetan Poyam and Devnath, residents of Chhattisgarh. According to the report, the injured, Sunil Dewan, Harbil Gudiya, Kamda, Nirshtar Bhingra, Vinod Rawna, Dina Begra, Khela Ram Bisra, Subeg Singh, Tilakraj and Pen Singh, are being treated at the district hospital in Gopeshwar.

Among them, Harbil Gudiya, Kamda, Nirshtar Bhingra, Vinod Rawna, Dina Begra and Khela Ram Bisra are from Jharkhand; Subeg Singh is from Punjab; Tilakraj is from Himachal Pradesh and Sunil Dewan and Pen Singh are from Chhattisgarh. Rohit Pandey, a resident of Bihar, has been sent to Base Hospital in Srinagar, Pauri Garhwal district, for further treatment. Govindo Mandal, a resident of West Bengal, has been discharged from the hospital after treatment. Doctors and health department teams are continuously monitoring the health of the injured.

The National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP), police, and other technical and specialist teams are engaged in the relief and rescue operation. Due to debris and water in the tunnel, the operation is being carried out with utmost caution and coordination. Garhwal Range Inspector General of Police Rajiv Swaroop said they are facing difficulties in the rescue operation due to continuous rain, but they are confident that the operation will be successful.

“The area where the debris has accumulated is flooded, and it is being rapidly removed with the help of machines. The continuous rain is posing some challenges to the operation… We have marked a specific area for the operation, where every square metre is being carefully inspected,” he told PTI Videos.

Officials said Chief Minister Dhami took detailed information about the incident from Chamoli District Magistrate Gaurav Kumar and Superintendent of Police Surjeet Singh Panwar. He entered the tunnel and gathered necessary information from various teams engaged in the rescue operation.

According to officials, the chief minister asked them to make effective use of all available resources and technical expertise and make every possible effort to safely evacuate the remaining three people trapped in the tunnel by maintaining better coordination among all the rescue teams, including NDRF, SDRF, ITBP and Police. He also visited the Chamoli district hospital to inquire about the injured and express condolences to the families of the deceased. He assured all assistance and proper arrangements for their treatment.

“Arrangements have also been made at AIIMS, Rishikesh, in case anyone should be shifted there. All agencies such as NDRF, SDRF, ITBP, Uttarakhand Disaster Management Department are involved in rescue work,” the chief minister told reporters.

District Magistrate Gaurav Kumar, along with Garhwal MP Anil Baluni, is monitoring the rescue operation at the site. The DM has directed officials to ensure the effective use of all necessary resources and technical assistance to search for the missing people.

The incident has brought back memories of the November 12, 2023 accident at the under-construction Silkarya-Barkot tunnel in Uttarkashi district. A portion of the tunnel had collapsed, trapping 41 workers inside. All of them were safely evacuated on November 28, after various Central and state government agencies, with the help of international experts, conducted a massive rescue operation for nearly 17 days.