Chamoli Galcier Disaster: A lake was formed at the point where the glacier broke off and crashed into river Rishiganga before sliding further and leading to a devastating accident near Tapovan tunnel in Chamoli district of Uttarakhand. Rescuers were put on alert after geologists at the Hemwati Nandan Bahuguna Garwal University (HNBGU) who are conducting research in Raini village revealed visual footage saying a new water body took formation and may cause floods again. This comes a day after rescue teams briefly halted operations due to a rise in water levels in Rishiganga river. So far, 36 bodies have been recovered while nearly 170 people are still missing.
“We have sent a team of SDRF and NDRF for recce after we received information about the formation of a lake in the area above Raini village,” said DGP Uttarakhand Ashok Kumar.
“There’s a possibility that water is being accumulated above Raini village near Tapovan area. Many aerial recces have been done. An 8-member SDRF team sent today on foot to assess the situation. Further action to be taken after evaluation,” Ridhim Aggarwal, DIG SDRF told news agency ANI.
Rescue operations have entered the sixth day today as agencies began drilling through the debris in the Tapovan tunnel to establish contact with the over 30 people trapped inside after a flash flood triggered by the avalanche or glacier break. In an apparent change in strategy, rescuers are now also focusing on drilling through the hardened debris in the choked tunnel in Chamoli district, rather than just shifting mounds of silt and sludge heaped there to set up a life-saving system that will help pump oxygen into the blocked tunnel.
Teams of Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP), National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) and the Army are part of the multi-agency rescue effort, which continues even as hopes of finding the trapped workers alive recede with each passing hour.