TN: 4 workers trapped in stone quarry, rescue operation underway
What's the story
At least four workers have been trapped in a quarry in Tamil Nadu's Tirunelveli district since Saturday night, reported NDTV. They got trapped at a depth of 300 feet in a quarry in the Muneer Pallam region after a large boulder immobilized their truck. Initially, six workers were stuck in the quarry and two of them have been rescued so far, the report added.
Incident
What did officials say about the incident?
Officials said the workers were trapped in the Muneer Pallam quarry mines after boulders slid from the top and a large stone plummeted into the quarry, immobilizing their truck. They claimed six workers were stranded there initially, but fire service officers quickly rescued two of them. Later, the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) was brought in to lead the rescue work.
Rescue
Rescue operation led by NDRF
According to NDRF authorities, they are doing everything possible to save the employees as soon as possible. A helicopter was also reportedly brought in to aid the rescue efforts on Sunday morning. "Our 24x7 control room in Arakkonam is closely monitoring the situation round the clock and all efforts are being made in close collaboration with Tamil Nadu state administration," NDRF officials said.
Twitter Post
Images of rescue operation shared by 'ANI' on Twitter
Tamil Nadu | Two persons were rescued and four are still trapped in a quarry near Ponnakudi in Tirunelveli district after a giant stone fell into the quarry last night
— ANI (@ANI) May 15, 2022
NDRF teams called in from Arakkonam for the rescue operation pic.twitter.com/nqmpnWTlXt
Statement
What are the challenges?
Asra Garg, Inspector General of Police, Southern Range told NDTV the rescue operation was challenging for everyone given the depth of the site. "The structure of the quarry is such that it could take more time to rescue all those trapped. At the moment, we are not sure if there are more people trapped in the quarry other than the four workers," he said.