LIVE | Silkyara tunnel collapse: All 41 trapped workers rescued; PM Modi salutes their courage
NDRF, medical personnel on standby
National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and emergency medical personnel with stretchers are now on standby to enter the tunnel and work their way into the collapsed cavern.
First a single NDRF personnel will crawl down the pipe to assess the condition of the trapped men and begin the process of bringing them out. The workers will be brought out one-by-one on a specially-modified stretcher that will be pushed down the rescue pipe and pulled up manually by the rescuers. A temporary medical centre has been set up at the mouth of the tunnel, where each worker will be examined and given first aid, if needed, before they are prepped for transport in the ambulances.
'Rescued workers will be brought to AIIMS Rishikesh if...'
As Uttarkashi tunnel rescue operation enters final stage, AIIMS Rishikesh Assistant Professor Dr Narinder Kumar says, "The rescued workers will be brought here only if medical treatment requirements cannot be met in Uttarkashi District hospital. At AIIMS Rishikesh, there are 20 beds in Trauma Centre and a few ICU beds. If the workers are brought here, they can be given good medical care. A team of doctors has been constituted to be sent to Uttarkashi, if ordered by the state government."
CM Dhami at rescue site to greet workers
MOS Gen (retd) VK Singh and Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami enter the tunnel. 41 garlands also taken inside the tunnel to welcome the workers once they come out.
PM Modi calls Chief Minister Dhami
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday once again called Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami and took information about the relief and rescue work of the workers trapped in the tunnel in Silkyara.
Rescuers push pipe through tunnel debris to get trapped men out
Rescuers have managed to push a pipe through the debris to get out the 41 men trapped since a part of the 4.5km-long Silkyara-Barkot tunnel collapsed in Uttarakhand’s Uttarkashi 17 days ago. They can crawl through and begin getting the men anytime, officials said.
A National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) team will first go to the other side using the rescue pipeline with equipment such as gas cylinders and lights. If needed, a team of doctors will also be sent for a health check-up of the trapped men to ascertain their vitals. The trapped men would then be briefed about their rescue through the pipeline. They will lie down on wheel-fitted stretchers and be pulled to the other side using a rope. The men will be taken out one by one. The NDRF team will not leave the other side until all men are out.
#WATCH | Family members of the trapped workers who are expected to be rescued soon from the Silkyara tunnel in Uttarkashi say, "We are happy that they will be rescued soon. We will welcome them in a nice way. We had told them that the rescue team would reach them soon." pic.twitter.com/sRmEz5Dp64— ANI (@ANI) November 28, 2023