KAKINADA : Two persons were buried alive when a mound of soil caved on them while they were digging on the banks of river Thandava in East Godavari district. Locals and fellow workers saved two of the workers trapped under the mound of soil. The incident happened at Upparigudem under Tuni municipality.
According to information reaching here, the soil from the shores of Thandava river is used in agricultural fields as fertiliser. Workers are engaged by contractors to dig the soil and transport it to fields across various parts of the district and the State.Since no vehicle can reach the place, the soil dug from the shores of the river is transported to the nearby road by bullock carts.
On Monday, the four workers were digging the soil at a depth of nearly 10-12 metres when the tragedy happened. “Under severe heat, the soil became hard and the four had to apply intense efforts to loosen it. All of a sudden, a part of the soil crashed on them,’’ a police official said.
While two of them - G Sattibabu and E Sattibabu -- were pulled out by locals, the other two - Anaparthy Srinivasa Kumar (40) and Visim Sattibabu (55) - were buried alive under the soil. Locals stepped in and rescued the two as police and revenue officials allegedly did not reach the spot in spite of being informed of the incident. Payakaraopeta police registered a case and are investigating.