Whereabouts of 4 trapped workers in SLBC tunnel located: Minister Krishna Rao
Hyderabad: A week after the tragedy at the Srisailam Left Bank Canal (SLBC) tunnel, Telangana Excise minister Jupally Krishna Rao on Saturday announced a breakthrough in the collapse operation and said the rescuers have located the whereabouts of four of the total eight persons trapped in the partially collapsed tunnel.
Speaking to reporters at the tunnel site, Krishna Rao said the rescue team made a lot of progress during the last two days and expressed hope that they would be extricated by Sunday evening as five to seven-metre-high silt deposits have to be cleared by the rescuers.
“In my view, the whereabouts of four persons have been located through radar,” Krishna Rao told reporters.
ఎస్ఎల్బీసీ టన్నెల్ పైకప్పు కూలిన ఘటనలో పురోగతి లభించింది. సొరంగంలో చిక్కుకుపోయిన వారిలో నలుగురిని నిపుణులు గుర్తించారు. రేపు రాత్రి కల్లా వారిని బయటకు తీసుకొస్తాం. సొరంగంలో ముమ్మరంగా సహాయక చర్యలు కొనసాగుతున్నాయి. రెండ్రోజుల్లో మిగతా నలుగురి ఆచూకీ కనిపెడతాం. రెస్క్యూ సిబ్బంది… pic.twitter.com/Qrd99ebVU5
— Jupally Krishna Rao (@jupallyk_rao) March 1, 2025
He added that the four workers may have been stuck beneath the Tunnel Boring Machine (TBM).
When he was asked about the condition of the four workers whose whereabouts have been located, the minister said the chances of their survival were remote. Meanwhile, the officials have kept ambulances ready near the SLBC tunnel.
According to reports, the ground penetrating radar (GPR) study initiated by the representatives of the National Geophysical Research Institute (NGRI) detected some soft material under the debris in the last 10-15 metres of the tunnel.
Over 500 rescuers drawn from Army, Navy, NDRF, SDRF, Singareni Mines Rescue, Fire Services, National Geophysical Research Institute (NGRI), HYDRAA, South Central Railway plasma cutters, and Rat Miners worked on a war footing to help trace the eight people.
On Friday night, Nagarkurnool District Collector Badavath Santosh denied reports that the rescue workers found the bodies of the trapped workers.
It is pertinent to note that two workers were injured and eight others trapped when a portion of the tunnel roof collapsed on February 22 at the 14th km point inside the tunnel. Among them, two are engineers, two are operators and the remaining four are labourers.
The trapped workers, employed by Jaiprakash Associates, have been identified as Manoj Kumar (UP), Sri Niwas (UP), Sunny Singh (J&K), Gurpreet Singh (Punjab) and Sandeep Sahu, Jegta Xess, Santosh Sahu and Anuj Sahau, all from Jharkhand.
