Key Points
Rescuers on Monday brought in "rat miners" to drill through a narrow pipe and help pull out 41 construction workers trapped in a tunnel in the Indian Himalayas for more than two weeks after high-powered machines failed, officials said...
The men, low-wage workers from India's poorest states, have been stuck in the 4.5km (3 miles) tunnel in Uttarakhand state since it collapsed on Nov. 12...
The men have been getting food, water, light, oxygen and medicines through a pipe but efforts to dig a tunnel have run into a series of snags with machines...
Attempts to drill a tunnel horizontally through the debris trapping the men have been plagued by damage to machinery and rescuers will resort to drilling by hand, after clearing away the broken equipment inside the narrow evacuation pipe...
The drilling from inside the pipe, which is 900 millimetres (3 feet) wide, will be done by a team of six "rat miners" from central India, who officials described as "skilled workers"...
You might be interested in
Indian ‘rat miner’ rescuers reach 41 men trapped in tunnel
28, Nov, 23Workers, who have been trapped for 17 days, are to be pulled out one by one, officials say
After machines fail, ‘rat miners’ to help rescue 41 men trapped in Uttarkashi tunnel
27, Nov, 23The drilling from inside the pipe, which is 3 feet wide, will be done by a team of six 'rat miners' from central India, who officials described as 'skilled workers'.
‘Trapped Uttarkashi workers could be evacuated in 3 hours’ — cautious hope as rescuers reach closer
28, Nov, 2312 rat-hole miners have been trying to clear a path to the trapped workers, cutting and removing the debris by hand in a hazardous procedure. Workers have been trapped for 17 days.
Rescuers begin risky vertical drilling after agonizing bid to free trapped Himalayan tunnel workers falters
28, Nov, 23The weekslong effort to save 41 workers trapped in a collapsed Himalayan tunnel has entered a perilous new phase, with rescuers attempting to drill downward through unstable mountain terrain after a safer route faltered at the final stage.
Uttarakhand Silkyara Tunnel Rescue: Robots to check on mental well-being of workers
27, Nov, 23The robotic expert said that he held discussions with the officials engaged in the rescue operations regarding the ongoing rescue operation, adding that the team will implement the best possible solutions.
'Like brothers': Rescued Indian tunnel workers stayed hopeful through ordeal
29, Nov, 23Hope that they would be rescued soon kept many of the workers trapped in a collapsed tunnel in India strong through their ordeal, some of the men said on Wednesday, hours after they were pulled out of 17-days of confinement.
Men are coming home: Tunnel expert Arnold Dix says mission is to rescue all 41 trapped workers
21, Nov, 23Authorities released the first footage of the men trapped inside the tunnel on Monday, giving a new ray of hope to worried families and relatives
'First breakthrough achieved': 6-inch pipe reaches workers trapped in Uttarkashi tunnel, food to be sent
20, Nov, 23The Silkyara Tunnel, about 30 km from the district headquarters of Uttarkashi, is part of the ambitious Char Dham road project of the central government. The under-constructed tunnel collapsed around 5.30 am last Sunday.
All 41 workers rescued from collapsed tunnel in India after 17-day ordeal
07, Jan, 24Rescuers in northern India have successfully removed a group of 41 workers from a collapsed tunnel under the Himalayas, the climax of a 17-day rescue operation to drill through rock and debris.
Silkyara tunnel crisis: Landline facility set up for trapped workers
25, Nov, 23At present, the communication between the trapped workers and their relatives is facilitated by a communication system set up through a six-inch wide pipe. An endoscopic camera was also pushed through this pipe, allowing rescue workers and relatives of the trapped men to see the condition inside. Drilling at the collapsed portion of the tunnel has been halted since Friday as the the auger machine faced hurdles one after another. A tunnelling expert at the site said on Saturday the machine was broken.