Chamoli. The accident at an under-construction tunnel in Uttarakhand's Chamoli district has shocked the entire nation. Seven workers have died so far in the Thursday evening accident in the Mayapur area of ​​Pipalkoti, while three workers are still trapped inside the tunnel. Rescue operations have been ongoing for the past 16 hours to safely evacuate them.

According to officials, the accident occurred around 7 p.m. on Thursday. A THDC tunnel under construction suddenly began leaking water. Shortly thereafter, a landslide caused a large amount of debris to fill the tunnel, trapping workers.

A total of 22 workers were inside the tunnel at the time of the accident. So far, 12 have been safely evacuated, while the bodies of seven workers have been recovered. Rescue and relief teams say three workers are still trapped inside the tunnel and every effort is being made to rescue them.

The injured are being treated at Gopeshwar District Hospital. The 12 injured include six from Jharkhand, two from Chhattisgarh, and one each from Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Bihar, and West Bengal. The deceased include three from Uttar Pradesh, two from Uttarakhand, and two from Chhattisgarh.

Continuous waterlogging and debris accumulation inside the tunnel are hampering rescue operations. Joint teams of the NDRF, SDRF, ITBP, Army, and district administration are engaged in the relief operation.

Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami also arrived at the scene. He went inside the tunnel to review the rescue operation and inquire about the situation from officials. The Chief Minister then visited the Gopeshwar District Hospital and met with the injured people there.

The administration says that the biggest priority at present is to safely evacuate the stranded workers and the relief operation will continue until all the workers are evacuated.