Uttarakhand tunnel rescue work halted as river surges again

DEHRADUN: Rescue operations at a tunnel in Uttarakhand's Tapovan has been temporarily halted as several rivers in the area have surged again. Orders have been given to vacate the areas downstream, officials have said.

More than 200 people went missing after flash floods in Chamoli district on Sunday following a glacier burst in the upper reaches of Alakananda and Dhauliganga rivers.

A power plant and five bridges were washed away in the torrent of water that surged downstream towards mid-morning. Another power plant sustained heavy damages. As many as 32 bodies have been recovered, some from as far as 45 km away.

Around 30 people are thought to be trapped in the tunnel near a severely damaged hydroelectric plant that was under construction at Tapovan. The rescue work has been on for three days -- the going has been slow because of the mud and sludge inside the U-shaped tunnel.

After the alert was sounded today, security personnel working inside the tunnel rushed out and the heavy machines engaged in drilling through the debris and sludge inside were taken to safety.