It was like a Hollywood movie: An Uttarakhand disaster survivor recounts tunnel escape

Rajesh
Kumar, an Uttarakhand glacier burst survivor has recounted the horrendous
incident and how a roar of water trapped a dozen men in a Himalayan tunnel.
According to AFP, 26 people lost their life while 170 are still missing on
Monday after a breach in a glacier in Tapovan area of Uttarakhand’s Chamoli
district, resulting in flash flood, engulfing the valley.

Also read: Global warming behind Uttarakhand’s deadly avalanche, believe experts

The 28-year-old from his hospital bed narrated the incident when he
and his colleagues were working in a nearby hydroelectricity power complex, 300
metres i.e. around 1,000 feet deep inside the tunnel when floodwaters swamped them.
“We didn’t think we were going to make it,” he
told to AFP.

Kumar also said that it was like a Hollywood movie as while
working, they suddenly heard the sound of whistling and shouting and people
were asking them to evacuate. Although he thought of a fire but soon they
realised it was flash flood. They tried hard to escape and run but the water
kept following them. They were clung to scaffolding rods inside the tunnel, rescuing
each other and trying to keep their heads above water.

Also read: Glacier breach: How a phone call made from 300m deep inside a tunnel saved trapped workers

They were fortunate as they did not lose their grip off the
rods but the condition of tunnel became worse as with the increased flood, more
than 1.5 metres of mud and debris filled the tunnel. However after some time
they tried to escape by climbing the rock debris and found the mouth of tunnel.
It was a small opening which they weren’t sure where it led but they felt some
air and light.

Eventually, one men among them also got back his phone signal
and called for rescue. Soon the help came and pulled them out of a tiny hole at
the ground which made everyone emotional. After seeing the daylight they all
breathed the happiness of miraculously getting rescued after many hours.
However some were minorly injured so they were carried on stretchers, reported
AFP.

Also read: Raging muddy waters and shaking ground is all that Uttarakhand survivors remember

Hundreds of
paramilitary and emergency service workers were scouring the valley for other
survivors