A hectic battle to rescue 41 construction workers trapped in a tunnel in northern India has suffered fresh delays due to a problem with a drilling machine. Officials warned that the next 24 hours could be crucial to their chances of survival.
The workers were trapped under a collapsed road tunnel in the Uttarkashi district of India’s Uttarakhand state for 12 days after part of it collapsed due to a landslide.
According to the Times of India, the platform on which the US-made auger machine was mounted was destabilized by the formation of cracks.
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The 25-tonne platform is being reinforced with concrete and drilling is expected to resume later on Friday.
A crane carries part of a drill used to rescue construction workers in India. The platform on which the US-made Auger machine was mounted was destabilized by the formation of cracks. (Arun Sankar/AFP via Getty Images)
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The machine is used to drill through the rubble to create an escape route consisting of a tunnel made of pipes welded together. Once in place, rescue teams hope workers can escape to freedom.
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According to the BBC, the plan is to roll workers through the pipes on stretchers.
The drill has a drilling rate of up to 16 feet per hour and is equipped with a 2.9-foot diameter pipe for removing debris. Drilling is temporarily slowed down by the pile of rubble.
Rescue teams have to drill about 195 feet deep to reach the trapped workers. They are currently about 30 feet away and are in the final stages of the operation.
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Rescue workers prepare to enter the tunnel. (Arun Sankar/AFP via Getty Images)
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Construction workers have been trapped since Nov. 12, when a landslide caused part of the 2.7-mile-long Silkyara tunnel they were building to collapse about 500 feet from the entrance. The hilly area is prone to landslides and subsidence.
The workers had helped build a section of a 424-mile road connecting various Hindu pilgrimage sites in the area. The mountainous topography is home to several Hindu temples that attract pilgrims and tourists.
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Shortly after the collapse, rescue workers were able to make contact with the workers and provide them with oxygen, food and water.
A view of the entrance of the collapsed tunnel in the Uttarkashi district of the Indian state of Uttarakhand. Rescue efforts were delayed due to a problem with a drilling machine. (Arun Sankar/AFP via Getty Images)
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It is the latest setback in the rescue operation.
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The operation was halted on Wednesday after workers encountered a thick metal rod that had to be cut with gas cutters, the BBC reported.
Officials seized the U.S. plane last week after the original plane was too slow to move through the rubble.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.