Drilling operations to rescue the 41 men trapped inside the collapsed Silkyara tunnel for 12 days were once again suspended on Friday, according to officials. That snag was set right earlier in the day and the 25-tonne auger machine was restarted. But after a brief while the operation had to be stopped again in the second setback in two days. That snag was set right earlier in the day and the 25-tonne auger machine was restarted. But after a brief while the operation had to be stopped again in the second setback in two days. Rescue workers said in the evening that the drill bit has been pulled out through the passage already bored by the machine.
Sections of steel pipes had been inserted into the bored passage to allow the trapped men to be pulled out. The effort had reached up to 48.6 metres out of the estimated 57 metres of rubble that blocks the tunnel, officials had said.