Uttarakhand disaster: 36 dead, 204 missing as rescue operation underway on sixth day

The death toll in the deluge that followed the avalanche at Uttarakhand’s Chamoli reached 36, ANI reported on Friday quoting the state government. 204 people are missing, as the rescue operation is underway for the sixth consecutive day. A tunnel of the NTPC, in which more than 30 people are estimated to be trapped, is the key rescue operation site.

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In a changed strategy, rescuers on Thursday drilled through the hardened debris in the choked tunnel, located in Tapovan, Chamoli district. The aim, for now, is to set up a “life-saving system”, possibly to pump oxygen into the blocked tunnel, PTI reported quoting Garhwal Commissioner Ravinath Raman. 

Meanwhile, Uttarakhand’s DGP Ashok Kumar on Friday said, the rescue team would try to drill and gain entry into a smaller tunnel that is 12 meters below the existing tunnel, ANI reported. This is being done to “as there might be a possibility of human presence there,” the DGP said. 

On Thursday afternoon, the rescue operation was temporarily halted over the rise in water of the Dhauliganga river. The operation was later resumed.

The Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP), the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) and the Army are part of the multi-agency rescue effort.

Meanwhile, the last rites were performed on Thursday for those killed in the disaster. Four bodies and seven severed human limbs were consigned to the flames at the confluence of the Alaknanda and Bhagirathi at Karnaprayag, as per a PTI report.

Three more funerals took place at Chamoli Ghat. Family members of some of the missing people have been visiting the Tapovan site every day for any news about their loved ones.

Uttarakhand Governor Baby Rani Maurya visited Tapovan. Family members of some of the missing people expressed anger and some broke down upon the Governor’s visit. They asked her to get the rescue operation speeded up.

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Maurya told them to be patient, assuring that the agencies involved will not spare any effort, PTI reported.

The worried relatives also claimed that some of the machines were not working properly, slowing the pace of the rescue effort.