KHLIEHRIAT, June 4: In an endeavour to rescue the trapped miners in the coal mining tragedy for the 5th day in a row, a 57-member rescue team comprising NDRF, SDRF and Special Rescue Team (SRT) of the Fire and Emergency Service resumed their operation once again to save the six miners stuck in a coal pit in Umpleng village, about 20 km from Khliehriat, on Friday afternoon.
The rescue operation was delayed due to inclement weather conditions which recommenced only after the weather had cleared up.
Adding to the existing setbacks, one of the submersible water pumps developed defects and stopped functioning on Friday morning, further delaying the rescue efforts by a couple of hours. Additional dry water pumps only arrived at the incident site around 10:30 am to augment the existing submersible water pumps.
While speaking to The Shillong Times, East Jaintia Hills Deputy Commissioner, Ethelbert Kharmalki informed that the water levels had risen by approximately ten feet from the original level of 150 feet on Thursday due to the incessant downpour.
Kharmalki also apprised that the NDRF will monitor the water levels once the additional pumps are deployed.
Earlier, the Deputy Commissioner notified that initially, one of the submersible water pumps had malfunctioned in the morning; but they had somehow managed to reuse it after it was repaired.
According to him, they are executing two stages of pumping since the 25 HP pump will not be able to pull out the water, given the sheer depth of the coal pit as well as the rising levels of water inside.
The submersible pump is being used to draw the water out from deep under and then at the level of 200 feet, a dry pump has been fitted to augment the strength of the submersible pump to pull out the water rapidly.
Kharmalki also notified that the fitting of these pumps consumes a lot of time due to paucity of skilled manpower in the midst of the ongoing lockdown.
“We lack mechanical power and many people have gone back home due to the lockdown. It is difficult to get small body parts to fit into these pump. We are engaging local labourers to fit these water pumps. These are some of the factors causing delays,” the DC said.
Kharmalki stated that they are hopeful that the water level would recede once they are able to activate all the water pumps.
He also informed that a 100 KV generator set is on the way, that will further increase supply of power so that all the water pumps available on site may be put to use.
The Deputy Commissioner, however, said that they will need to examine the time frame to continue with the pumping operation if the weather does not improve in the coming days.
“We will be able to gauge the water levels, only after the weather clears up. The NDRF personnel stationed at the place of occurrence are helping in monitoring the same,” Kharmalki said.
In other information, the DC also said that the Mining and Geology Department has written to Coal India Limited for providing their water pumps to augment the rescue mission.
Asked about the chances of survival of the trapped miners, he said it would be too early to say anything since they were doing everything possible to rescue the six miners.
Meanwhile, Kharmalki said that when officials reached the spot, no labour shed was found to indicate that the labourers were staying there.
“However, there are possibilities that these temporary labour sheds were demolished and thrown inside the coal pits,” the DC said.
Asked why the Kirloskar submersible pumps used in the Ksan rescue operations were not being used at Umpleng, Kharmalki said that they would have to set up a platform to place the water pump in the middle of the coal pit before using it which is not possible in this case.
Kharmalki also said that the district administration has asked the Water Resources Department to find out if the mine where the six labourers are trapped is connected to any water source. He further observed that they will also need to assess if the coal mines are connected to water channels.
Meanwhile, NDRF Commandant Hitender Pal Singh Kandari, who arrived from Guwahati to assess the situation, said it will be difficult to assess the fate of the trapped miners since the water level is too high.
“We will try to extract the water from the coal pit and then think of our next step. What makes the situation even more difficult is that there are so many rat holes deep inside,” Kandari said.
“Nothing can be done if the water cannot be pumped out,” the NDRF officer said.
Replying to a query, the NDRF commandant said that they have three divers in the team but they cannot be pressed into service at the moment. “It is not safe for the divers since 150 feet of water is too much,” Kandari said.
“The vertical pit will work as a pressurized tank rendering it unsafe for our divers. The only way is to let the water be drawn out first,” he added.
NDRF Assistant Commandant, Santosh Kumar Singh said that the rescue task is a challenging one, since there is no blueprint of the coal mines.
“We are hoping that it does not turn into a Ksan-like situation,” Singh said.
He further said that the Force was trying to provide its expertise on safety aspects to non-NDRF members involved in the rescue operation.
“Everything is locally arranged whether it is the pipe or the water pump. Even the workers are locally managed. Therefore, they are more equipped to handle situations like these,” Singh said.
