After rigorous attempt, rescuers intensify mission as they pull out first body from Meghalaya mine hole

Intensifying the efforts in the mission to rescue the miners trapped, the rescue team managed to pull out the remains first body that they had managed to locate in the flooded Meghalaya coal mine in East Jaintia Hills district. This comes after a rigorous attempt of 42 days by the rescue team to bring out the miners trapped inside.

Pulling a joint mission, the NDRF team and the Indian Navy together worked day in and out on this mission. Earlier, with the help of Indian Navy’s underwater remotely operated vehicle (ROV) the rescue team had detected a body that had slipped from the grip of the ROV. The body was found late on Wednesday evening.

It took six men; 2 from the NDRF, 3 navy men and one civil hospital staffer to pull out the body from the flooded mine. The rescuers went into the shaft in two teams with an inflatable boat, a body bag and other NDRF equipment. The body was retrieved from a depth of 170 feet in the 355-foot deep main shaft of the mine. The team has sent it to the Civil Hospital Khliehriat for post-mortem.

R Susngi, the spokesperson of the East Jaintia Hills district administration informed that the Indian Navy resumed their work with the ROV inside the main shaft to locate the remains that slipped from the jaw of ROV while trying to pull it upwards.

The body which was spotted by the ROV in one of the rat holes on January 16 was in a highly decomposed state and authorities had sought the help of family members of the missing miners to identify the victim. Parts of the body started disintegrating as the ROV tried to pull it out.

At least 15 miners were trapped in the illegal rat-hole mine in Khloo Ryngksan of East Jaintia Hills district, when it was flooded on December 13.

COURTESY :- NEWS BHARATI