Two days after relentless hard work,
labour, and heartfelt prayers brought the 41 trapped men out of the Silkayara
tunnel site in Uttarkashi, international tunnelling expert Arnold Dix
appreciated the efforts of the rescue teams and said the outcome would not have
been possible without the cooperation of the national agencies.
Having cooperated and stayed in touch
with the agencies throughout the rescue period, tunnelling expert Dix said, “If
they hadn’t cooperated the way they did, there’s no way we would have got this
outcome. We were all one big team. 41 men, home safe, no one hurt, perfect.”
Arnold Dix expressed gaiety at the
successful rescue operation of all the workers trapped at the site and said, “I
feel fantastic. I feel content. I am not in a rush to go anywhere. I am just
feeling very relaxed and happy. I just traveled with the men who were rescued,
and I am delighted.”
Meanwhile, all 41 workers rescued from
the collapse site at Uttarkashi arrived at the Delhi airport to head back to
their families, all safe and healthy, on Thursday.
Rescued worker Gabbar Singh Negi spoke about
the initial occurrence of the collapse incident and recalled, “At first, when
we got to know that this incident had happened, we were working at the front,
and work was going on. It was around 5 am.”
“We had lost all our communication.
Somehow, a worker contacted me on wireless and said that this kind of incident
had happened. We thought it wasn’t a big issue at first. However, when we went
and looked, we saw that the whole way was closed,” he added.
Expressing gratitude for the safe rescue
operation he said, “Uttarakhand is Devbhoomi, and the whole country has prayed
for us all these days. It is because of the prayers and wishes of all our
countrymen that today I stand before you all, safe and sound.”
Another rescued worker also spoke about
the mishap and recalled, “At first, we were very worried. We started receiving
food after 12 hours (inside the tunnel). I am all okay now. I would like to
thank the government.”
On November 12, a section of the tunnel,
between 205 and 260 metres from the Silkyara side, collapsed. The workers, who
were beyond the 260-metre mark at the time, were trapped, with their exit
blocked.
Following their safe evacuation, Prime
Minister Narendra Modi also praised the courage and patience of the trapped
workers and their families, as well as the bravery and determination of the
rescue personnel.
PM Modi said everyone involved in the
rescue mission set an example of humanity and teamwork.
ANI
