{"id":28957,"date":"2023-11-27T11:29:06","date_gmt":"2023-11-27T11:29:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news.pakistaninewspaperlist.com\/rainy-weather-hamper-indian-rescuers-attempt-to-reach-trapped-men-the-express-tribune\/"},"modified":"2023-11-27T11:29:06","modified_gmt":"2023-11-27T11:29:06","slug":"rainy-weather-hamper-indian-rescuers-attempt-to-reach-trapped-men-the-express-tribune","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pakistaninewspaperlist.com\/news\/rainy-weather-hamper-indian-rescuers-attempt-to-reach-trapped-men-the-express-tribune\/","title":{"rendered":"Rainy weather hamper Indian rescuers attempt to reach trapped men | The Express Tribune"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\nINDIA\/
\nGAUCHAR, INDIA:
\n<\/strong><\/p>\n

Wet weather expected on Monday could mean more complications for the rescue of 41 construction workers trapped in a tunnel in the Indian Himalayas for more than two weeks but rescue leaders said they are prepared to deal with it.<\/p>\n

The workers, from some of India’s poorest states, have been stuck in the 4.5 km (3 miles) tunnel in Uttarakhand state since it collapsed on Nov. 12.<\/p>\n

Bad weather was approaching with thunderstorms, hail and lower temperatures expected in the mountains but rescue organisers said they would handle it.<\/p>\n

“They are trained in working in every situation so that’s not a worry for us,” said Mahmood Ahmad, managing director of the NHIDCL company, which is building the tunnel and helping with the rescue, referring to rescue teams.<\/p>\n

The 41 trapped men have been getting food, water, light, oxygen, and medicines through a narrow pipe but efforts to dig them a tunnel to bring them out have run into a series of snags.<\/p>\n

Rescuers trying to drill a tunnel horizontally through the rocks trapping the men have been plagued by damage to their machinery and have resorted to drilling by hand, after clearing away the broken equipment.<\/p>\n

Read\u00a0<\/strong>Manual drilling likely in last stretch to rescue trapped workers<\/a><\/p>\n

On Sunday, they opened another route to the men, aiming to drill a shaft straight down from the top of the mountain above them to get them out.<\/p>\n

“Difficulties will come, difficulties have been coming, but we are prepared for it,” said Jasvant Kapoor, a general manager of the SJVNL drilling company which is in charge of the new shaft.<\/p>\n

As well as the thunder and hail, cold weather is setting in with a minimum of 9 degrees Celsius (48.2 degrees Fahrenheit) expected on Monday.<\/p>\n

The tunnel is part of the Char Dham highway, one of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s most ambitious projects, aimed at connecting four Hindu pilgrimage sites through 890 km of roads.<\/p>\n

Authorities have not said what caused the initial cave-in that trapped the men as they were nearing the end of their night shift but the region is prone to landslides, earthquakes, and floods.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n