At least six workers are feared trapped following the collapse of a tunnel roof in Telangana’s Nagarkurnool district on Saturday.
The incident occurred due to the slippage of a concrete segment used to seal seepage at the 14-km inlet of the Srisailam Left Bank Canal tunnel, which extends from Srisailam towards Devarakonda.
Chief Minister Revanth Reddy has directed relevant authorities to promptly reach the site and initiate rescue operations. In an official statement, the Chief Minister’s Office confirmed that “some people were injured in the incident” and announced that the District Collector, Superintendent of Police, and personnel from the fire department and Hyderabad Disaster Response and Assets Protection Agency (HYDRAA) have been mobilized for immediate relief measures.
While official information on the exact number of workers inside the tunnel at the time of the accident is pending, a police official told news agency PTI that six to eight workers are believed to be trapped. “The incident occurred when some workers had gone inside as part of the work when the roof collapsed at 12-13 km inside the tunnel,” the official said.
The state’s Irrigation Minister Uttam Kumar Reddy, Irrigation Advisor Aditya Nath Das, IG Sathyanarayana, and DG Fire Services GV Narayan Rao are currently overseeing the rescue operations at the site. Union Coal Minister G Kishan Reddy has also expressed concern over the accident, urging officials to ensure the safe retrieval of the trapped workers and to provide necessary medical treatment to the injured.
As rescue operations continue, the authorities are working diligently to secure the site and bring the trapped workers to safety.
