Search continues for excavator operator trapped under debris in Palghar

A search involving agencies, including the NDRF, to rescue an excavator operator continued on Friday nearly 36 hours after he was buried under debris following a cave-in at a water project site in Maharashtra’s Palghar district, an official said. The excavator operator was trapped after the soil and wall structure collapsed during work on a tunnel shaft at the Surya water supply project site in Sasun Navghar village, some 50 km from Mumbai, around 9 pm on Wednesday night.

The rescue team, including personnel from the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), are trying to locate the operator, said the chief of District Disaster Management Cell Vivekanand Kadam.

He said the team has drilled holes in the tunnel shaft and is trying to locate the trapped person with the help of cameras. The rescuer are moving cautiously to avoid more cave-ins, he said. Rescue dogs have also been pressed into service, he said.

Amid the operation, relatives and colleagues of the trapped person anxiously waited outside the accident spot praying for his safety. The Surya Regional Water Supply Scheme is an initiative of the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA), envisioned to provide drinking water to the ever-increasing population in the MMR region, as per officials.

A treatment plant was set up and infrastructure built to supply treated water. Under this scheme, 403 MLD (million litres per day) water will be provided to areas under the Mira-Bhayander and Vasai-Virar municipal corporations, and nearby villages in and around Palghar district