Rescuers recover bodies from tunnel after Himalayan glacier disaster
Rescuers are combing through muck-filled ravines and valleys for survivors after the sudden collapse of a Himalayan glacier triggered massive flooding in northern India.
Members of National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF) carry the body of a victim after recovering it from the debris inside a tunnel in Tapovan in the northern state of Uttarakhand, India, February 14, 2021.
Rescuers searching muck-filled ravines and valleys for survivors after the sudden collapse of a Himalayan glacier triggered massive flooding in northern India a week ago found 11 more bodies, raising the death toll to 49.
Krishan Kumar, a spokesperson for the National Disaster Response Force, said 155 people were still missing after a part of a glacier near Nanda Devi mountain broke off on February 7, unleashing a devastating flood in the region in Uttarakhand state.
Kumar said five bodies were found in a tunnel of a power project as rescuers cleared the debris and looked for any survivors.
READ MORE: In pictures: India’s Uttarakhand glacier flood disaster
Race against time
Krishan Kumar, a spokesperson for the National Disaster Response Force, said five bodies were found in a tunnel of a power project as rescuers cleared the debris and looked for any survivors.
Six other bodies were found in a village in the area.
Rescuers are using excavators and shovels to clear sludge from the tunnel at the Tapovan hydroelectric plant in an attempt to reach dozens of trapped workers as hopes for their survival fade.
Some relatives have held protests at the entrance accusing authorities of not working fast enough to find the men.
Authorities warned residents of a new rise in the water level but locals still gathered around the tunnel again on Sunday waiting for news.
Many were colleagues of those stuck inside, who escaped when the disaster struck.
The floodwaters, mud and boulders roared down the mountain along the Alaknanda and Dhauliganga rivers, breaking dams, sweeping away bridges and forcing the evacuation of many villages.
Scientists are investigating what caused the glacier to break, possibly an avalanche or a release of accumulated water. Experts say climate change may be to blame since warming temperatures are shrinking glaciers and making them unstable worldwide.
READ MORE: India's Himalayan disaster puts dams, ignored warnings under spotlight
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