Team Silkyara Enters Telangana Tunnel Collapse, Survival Chances Very Low

8 individuals have been trapped under debris and muck for over 2 days after the Srisailam Left Bank Canal (SLBC) tunnel partially collapsed on Saturday morning in Telangana's Nagarkurnool district. After exhausting every single  possible methods to rescue them, the Telangana government has enlisted the help of the rat miners, who had previously rescued construction workers trapped in the Silkyara Bend-Barkot tunnel. Even after continuous efforts by the Indian Army, Navy, NDRF, and other agencies, there has been no breakthrough so far in the rescue mission. The teams have faced several challenges, including navigating through thick muck, tangled iron rods, and cement blocks to reach the site where the accident occurred. The individuals have been trapped for over 2 days inside the tunnel after a section of it collapsed in the Srisailam Left Bank Canal (SLBC) project in Nagarkurnool district. The state minister has described the chances of rescuing the trapped individuals alive as ‘very, very, very, very remote’. 

"To be honest, the chances of their survival are very, very, very, very remote. Because, I myself went up to the end, almost just 50 meters short (of the accident site). When we took photographs, the end (of the tunnel) was visible. And out of the 9 meter diameter (of the tunnel)--almost 30 feet, out of that 30 feet, mud has piled up upto 25 feet", minister Jupally Krishna Rao told to PTI. "When we shouted their names also, there was no response...so, there (seems to be) no chance at all," he said further.

"Even assuming they (the trapped persons) are in the lower part of the TBM machine, assuming even if it is intact on the top, where is the air (oxygen)? Underneath, how the oxygen will go," he asked though pumping of oxygen & dewatering have been done continuously.

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