6 workers trapped, 16 rescued after landslide sends debris, water into Chamoli tunnel

Six workers were trapped inside an under-construction THDC India tunnel near Pipalkoti in Uttarakhand’s Chamoli district after a landslide caused debris and water to gush into the 3-km-long tail-race tunnel on Thursday evening.

According to officials, the debris and water entered the tunnel around 1.5 km from its mouth, trapping workers who were inside at the time.

Police said the incident occurred around 7:05 pm, when 22 workers were inside the tunnel. Sixteen workers have been rescued so far, while a search and rescue operation is underway to evacuate the remaining three, officials said.

Emergency response teams, including personnel from the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) and National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), were deployed following the incident.

CM Dhami directs officials to intensify rescue efforts

Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami expressed concern over the incident and directed officials to conduct rescue operations on a war footing.

He said NDRF and SDRF teams had been sent to the site considering the seriousness of the situation and that all necessary resources were being mobilised to safely evacuate those still trapped.

Dhami said he was in constant touch with senior officials and receiving real-time updates on the rescue operation. He also instructed authorities to ensure there was no laxity in the efforts and that all possible assistance was provided to the affected workers and their families.

Vinod Kumar Suman, secretary of disaster management and rehabilitation, said all agencies had been directed to coordinate closely and expedite rescue efforts.

“The priority is to safely evacuate all the people trapped inside the tunnel,” Suman said, adding that additional resources and specialist teams would be deployed if required.

The district administration and various rescue agencies are continuing coordinated operations at the site as efforts remain focused on reaching the workers still inside the tunnel.