Rescue operations were underway in the Indian Himalayas on Monday (February 8) to locate some 170 missing and feared dead people.
That was after a glacier separated from the mountains on Sunday (7 February), destroying a dam and causing flooding in the process.
Authorities say at least a dozen bodies have already been recovered.
Most of the disappeared were workers at two hydroelectric projects downstream that had been damaged or swept away.
Twelve were released from a tunnel on Sunday.
But in a different tunnel, dozens of others are believed to be trapped.
A local resident was separated from his brother after the disaster.
“My brother was here. He worked here and now I heard that he is trapped inside. We have no information about him. There were six people from our village here.”
State officials say hundreds of employees have been deployed to help on the spot.
Aparna Kumar is with the Indo-Tibetan Border Police.
“A lot of debris has entered the tunnel, so there is a complete block. Two excavators are coming in to clean it up. There is an exit tunnel where 30 to 40 workers have been trapped since yesterday, so we are trying to rescue them.”
The damaged projects are some of the many ordered by the government of that state to develop the area.
But the state is subject to flash floods and landslides.
The disaster adds to long-standing criticism of projects built on ecologically sensitive mountains.
Video transcription
– [NON-ENGLISH SPEECH]
– Rescue operations were underway in the Indian Himalayas on Monday to locate about 170 missing and dead people.
– [NON-ENGLISH SPEECH]
– That was after a glacier separated from the mountains on Sunday, destroying a dam and causing flooding in the process.
– [NON-ENGLISH SPEECH]
– Authorities say at least a dozen bodies have already been recovered. Most of the missing were workers at two hydroelectric projects downstream that were damaged or swept away. 12 were released from a tunnel on Sunday. But in a different tunnel, dozens of others are believed to be trapped. A local resident was separated from his brother after the disaster.
– [NON-ENGLISH SPEECH]
INTERPRETER: My brother was here, [INAUDIBLE] Singh. He used to work here, and now I hear that he’s trapped inside. We have no information about him. There were six people from our village here.
– State officials say hundreds of employees have been deployed to help on the spot. Aparna Kumar is with the Indo-Tibetan Border Police.
– [NON-ENGLISH]
INTERPRETER: Much debris entered the tunnel. Therefore, there is a complete block. Two bulldozers are coming in to clean it.
– [NON-ENGLISH SPEECH]
INTERPRETER: There is an exit tunnel where 30 to 40 workers have been trapped since yesterday, so we are trying to rescue them.
– [NON-ENGLISH SPEECH]
– The damaged projects are some of the many ordered by the government of that state to develop the area, but the state is subject to floods and landslides. The disaster adds to long-standing criticism of projects built on ecologically sensitive mountains.
– [NON-ENGLISH SPEECH]