Earthmover operator killed as soil mound caves in during excavation in Khammam

An earthmover operator from Andhra Pradesh died after a large quantity of soil and boulders collapsed onto his vehicle during excavation work at a hillock in Telangana's Khammam district.

Khammam: An earthmover operator died after being buried beneath a mass of soil that collapsed on his vehicle at Vennavalli hillock located between Pedda Korukondi and Vennavalli villages in Kallur mandal, Khammam district.

The incident occurred when the deceased, Ravi Kumar, a resident  of Chillakallu in NTR district, Andhra Pradesh was excavating soil to load it into a tipper truck late on Saturday night. The soil, along with heavy boulders, suddenly collapsed, trapping the operator inside the cabin.

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Upon receiving information from locals, SI Haritha reached the spot engaged three earthmovers to rescue the operator, but after extracting him from the soil he was found dead.

According to locals, soil excavation and transport work has been ongoing at Vennavalli hillock for the past few months for Khanapuram Gannavaram highway works. It was suspected that deep excavation could have led to the incident.

Villagers alleged that authorities failed to monitor the ongoing excavation work. They demanded a comprehensive inquiry by Mining department officials to ascertain whether the operations were authorised and whether safety regulations were followed.