LIVE | Silkyara tunnel collapse: Rescue ‘can go on for long’; landline set up for workers
'Vertical drilling more time consuming'
Efforts are also being made to create a vertical escape passage, officials said. A big drilling machine was moved towards the hill above the tunnel on Saturday morning where two lowest elevation spots have been identified by experts for vertical drilling. A 1.5-km access road to the top of the tunnel has already been built by the Border Roads Organisation (BRO) as the option of vertical drilling has been on cards for some time.
Vertical drilling is a more time-consuming and complicated option which demands more exactitude and caution due to narrower space available on top of the tunnel roof, international tunnelling expert Arnold Dicks had said a few days ago.
Uttarkashi (Uttarakhand) tunnel rescue: Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke to Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami on the phone today. Information was taken about the rescue operation...The PM also inquired about the condition of the workers trapped inside the tunnel and the food… pic.twitter.com/XUjxd6lvRx— ANI (@ANI) November 24, 2023
#WATCH | Union Minister Gen. VK Singh (Retd) along with officials enter Uttarkashi's Silkyara tunnel where the rescue operation is underway to bring out the trapped workers. pic.twitter.com/rY7ADSQN49— ANI (@ANI) November 24, 2023
Drilling to resume after 2 PM
Officials have said drilling will resume after 2 PM.
NDRF conducts evacuation rehearsal using wheeled stretchers
The NDRF on Friday conducted a rehearsal of how it would take its wheeled stretchers through the chute being prepared to rescue the 41 workers trapped inside the Silkyara tunnel.
An NDRF personnel went through the passage, pushing a wheeled stretcher tied to a rope at the end of the tunnel and was pulled back up after completing the stretch.
A passage has been made using 800 mm diameter steel pipes through the rubble at the tunnel to rescue the workers who have been trapped inside for the past 12 days.
An NDRF personnel who went into the passage was lying on the wheeled stretcher facing downwards.
There was enough room inside the pipes and he had no difficulty in breathing during the exercise, he said.
#WATCH | | Uttarkashi (Uttarakhand) tunnel rescue: NDRF demonstrates the movement of wheeled stretchers through the pipeline, for the rescue of 41 workers trapped inside the Silkyara Tunnel once the horizontal pipe reaches the other side. pic.twitter.com/mQcvtmYjnk— ANI (@ANI) November 24, 2023
Drilling to re-start by 11-11.30: Former advisor to PMO
#WATCH | Uttarkashi (Uttarakhand) tunnel rescue | Former advisor to PMO, Bhaskar Khulbe says, "We hope that we will start the drilling by 11-11:30 am. Ground penetration radar study has shown that there is no metallic obstruction in the next 5 metres," pic.twitter.com/pKVUq5k2QU— ANI (@ANI) November 24, 2023
Drilling to re-start by 11-11.30: Former advisor to PMO
#WATCH | Uttarkashi (Uttarakhand) tunnel rescue | Former advisor to PMO, Bhaskar Khulbe says, "We hope that we will start the drilling by 11-11:30 am. Ground penetration radar study has shown that there is no metallic obstruction in the next 5 metres," pic.twitter.com/pKVUq5k2QU— ANI (@ANI) November 24, 2023
Drilling to re-start by 11-11.30: Former advisor to PMO
#WATCH | Uttarkashi (Uttarakhand) tunnel rescue | Former advisor to PMO, Bhaskar Khulbe says, "We hope that we will start the drilling by 11-11:30 am. Ground penetration radar study has shown that there is no metallic obstruction in the next 5 metres," pic.twitter.com/pKVUq5k2QU— ANI (@ANI) November 24, 2023