Meghalaya: The rescue operation to save 15 men trapped in a rat hole-mine in Meghalaya had finally begun on Day 17 after the flooding of the mine. When the divers could not find any bodies, Navy has decided to descend again into the flooded labyrinth to search for the survivors.
The rescue operation is being run by a joint team of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), the Navy and the Odisha Fire Service.
After lowering the inflatable boat into the shaft and checking for the possibility of diving deeper, the NDRF has stated that the divers can operate up to 40 ft. of water safely.
The Odhisha Fire Service also put their machines into test mode and have prepared to mover their pumbs to the other abandoned shafts to pump out the water.
The illegal mine collapsed after a nearby river flooded the rat-hole mine water through an adjacent abandoned mine, on December 13.
The Navy divers went inside the mine at 3:00 pm and came out at 6:00 pm and reported that the shaft was very dark and deep, and the water level was at about 150 feet, said the officials. They could dive only till 90 feet.
They also made a request to fix more halogen bulbs inside the shaft for better visibility.
The operation will be coordinated by all the three teams -- Navy, NDRF and OFS.