Uttarkashi Tunnel Collapse: Vertical Drilling Underway After Snag in Rescue Op

Authorities have begun vertical drilling to create an escape passage for the trapped workers.

Rescue officials at the entrance of the Silkyara tunnel during rescue operations on Saturday, 25 November, to save 41 workers trapped inside.

(Photo: PTI)

After the rescue operations to save the 41 workers trapped in the Silkyara tunnel in Uttarakhand's Uttarkashi faced setbacks on Saturday, 25 November, authorities have begun vertical drilling to create an escape passage for them.

"Vertical drilling of 19.2 metres done on first day to create escape passage for 41 workers trapped inside Silkyara tunnel," news agency PTI quoted an official as saying.

On Saturday, the auger joint of the drilling machine broke inside the rescue pipes, thus blocking the passage. The rescue team had used a plasma machine to cut the auger to expedite the rescue operation earlier on Sunday, 26 November.

"We are cutting screw out of the auger (machine), that's ongoing. We got a plasma machine to cut it faster..It is about 16 metres more of auger to cut.," Chris Cooper of engineering conglomerate Larsen & Toubro had said as per PTI.

The rescue op: Authorities are also considering manual drilling or descending from the mountain's top as alternatives. International tunneling advisor Arnold Dix had predicted a possible Christmas deadline for extraction.

He said, "It may take some time, perhaps up to a month, but I cannot specify the exact timeline. Rushing the process is not advisable. The priority is the safe return of these men, and I am confident they will be home for Christmas," reported ANI.

Earlier, the rescue officials were attempting to drill through the debris to a distance of around 60 metres with the help of a machine with an auger, insert pipes in the space that is made after drilling, and get the workers out through the pipes.

However, now officials will need to manually cut the auger blades and clear the pipes, which could take several days.

"Efforts are ongoing to pull back the rest of the 32 metre auger left inside the pipe. Manual cutting of auger blades has been started inside the pipe to pull out the augers," a bulletin released on Saturday morning read, as per The Indian Express.

Addressing the media, National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) member Lt Gen (Retd) Syed Ata Hasnain said, "Since yesterday, several obstacles have come in the way of auger machine, so there has been no progress and it has been put on halt. Now the manual approach of excavation is being taken."

Hasnain said that the drilling is likely to resume in the next two days.

"Whatever methods we are using right now, we have to have some patience. We need to understand that a very difficult operation is going on. Two methods are being used currently, but a third method that is draft method may also be used soon. Currently, the situation is that the 47-meter digging has been done, we have to keep it stable and remove the broken part of the Auger machine...I feel in the next 1-2 days the drilling will again start. This operation may go longer and we need to boost the morale of the labourers and the family members," he told mediapersons.

Tunnel expert on delay: Meanwhile, global tunnel expert Arnold Dix – who has been assisting with rescue efforts – confirmed that the auger won't be used anymore.

"You will not see the augering anymore. Auger's work is finished. The auger (machine) has broken. It's irreparable. It is disrupted. No more work from Auger. No more drilling from the Auger. There will not be a new auger," he told news agency ANI.

He also said that multiple options are being looked at to bring the trapped workers out without harm.

"Now, the mountain has again resisted the Auger, so we're rethinking our approach. This is a decision that's been made by all the experts, including Indian and local experts. The Himalayan experts from India are providing us with all the information we need. I am confident that 41 men are coming home," he said.  

Dix told mediapersons that he was confident that the workers will be rescued by Christmas.

"... I'm confident that they'll be home in time for Christmas...In the beginning, I never promised it would be quick, I never promised it would be easy, I never said it would be tomorrow, I never said it would be tonight...They'll be safe,"

Arnold Dix told mediapersons as quoted by ANI

CM Dhami takes stock: Meanwhile, Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami reached Uttarkashi on Saturday to take stock of the situation. He told media persons that both the state and central government was working on "all options possible" to rescue the workers.

Dhami said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been inquiring about the workers often and asking for the latest status on a daily basis.

"Prime Minister Narendra Modi is very sensitive towards the workers trapped in Silkyara, Uttarkashi Tunnel. The Prime Minister is taking detailed information every day about the well-being of the workers and the ongoing relief and rescue operations in the tunnel. Central agencies, state administration and teams of international experts are working on all options, we will soon be successful in evacuating the labour brothers safely," Dhami said.

The workers have been trapped in the tunnel since 12 November.

(With inputs from ANI and The Indian Express.)