The death toll from a tunnel collapse at an under-construction hydroelectric project in India's remote northeast has risen to 20, officials confirmed. The incident occurred on Monday in Namchi district in the Himalayan state of Sikkim, where workers were constructing a tunnel for a state-run hydropower project on the Teesta river.
Rescue Efforts Hampered
Out of the 25 workers who were trapped, 13 bodies have been recovered so far. Rescuers have also seen seven to eight more bodies inside the tunnel but have not been able to retrieve them due to water-logging and methane gas leaking from underground rock formations. Rajiv Roka, director of the Sikkim State Disaster Management Authority, stated that the water level was around two-and-a-half feet, making retrieval difficult.
Cause Under Investigation
The collapse was triggered by an explosive release of suspected methane gas trapped in the rocks, resulting in dense smoke and toxic gases. The National Hydroelectric Power Corporation (NHPC) said a detailed investigation will be conducted to ascertain the exact cause of the incident. The region has seen torrential monsoon rains in recent days, which may have exacerbated the situation.
Accidents on large infrastructure construction sites are common in India, but environmental experts say excessive development projects have led to more disasters in the fragile Himalayan areas. In 2023, 41 workers were rescued after 17 days of being trapped under a Himalayan road tunnel that had collapsed in northern Uttarakhand state.