NEW DELHI/GUWAHATI: The presence of 70-80 feet of water is hampering the rescue operation to pull out at least 15 miners who had been trapped in a collapsed coal mine in Meghalaya’s East Jaintia Hills since December 13. Divers from the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) divers made another attempt on Friday but found no success.
A 20-member team of the Odisha Fire Services, headed by the chief fire service officer, reached Meghalaya capital Shillong on Friday equipped with high pressure pumps to drain out water. The Indian Navy is also deploying a 15 member diving team from Visakhapatnam to assist with the rescue.
The team is carrying specialised diving equipment including a re-compression chamber and remotely operated vehicles capable of searching underwater. It is expected to arrive on Saturday. During the day, the Air Force flew 21 members of the NDRF member from Bhubhaneshwar to Guwahati on a C-130 transport aircraft with ten water pumps for removing the water.
On Thursday, a team from private company Kirloskar Brothers Ltd had visited the site for an assessment. Currently, two full-fledged teams of the NDRF comprising 71 personnel and a 22-member team of the state’s Disaster Response Force are engaged in the rescue operation.
“The high level of water in the pit is acting as a hindrance in the search and rescue operations. So, either the water has to recede or it has to be pumped out,” NDRF officer SK Singh, who is commanding the operation, said.