Victims of a devastating flash flood attributed to the rupture of a Himalayan glacier, 34 people were still trapped, Wednesday, February 10, in a tunnel in northern India.

Rescuers redoubled their efforts to try to save these employees of the hydraulic power stations stranded since the disaster which struck Sunday morning in the valley of the small state of Uttarakhand, located on the Indo-Tibetan border.

More than 170 people are still missing and at least 32 dead are deplored, according to the authorities, who warn that it will take days to find other bodies under the rubble and the thick layer of brown mud.

Twenty-five of the bodies have yet to be identified as many of the victims come from distant parts of India and families are not on hand to help recognize them. 

The disaster was blamed on the rupture of a glacier due to global warming, but the construction of dams, the dredging of the bed of rivers to extract the sand intended for the construction industry or the felling of trees to make way for new roads are among the hypotheses of the origin of the tragedy.

"We work 24 hours a day"

The major rescue operation has continued day and night since Sunday and is now focused on the tunnel under construction near a seriously damaged hydroelectric power station in Tapovan to try to find the 34 people trapped. 

Rescuers continued to force their way through the hundreds of tons of mud, rocks and rubble obstructing the tunnel, hoping the victims could find refuge in possible air pockets. 

"As time passes, naturally the chances (of finding them) diminish. But miracles happen," Piyoosh Rautela, head of disaster relief in Uttarakhand, told AFP. 

He added that they were doing everything in their power.

"We cannot operate several bulldozers there at the same time. We work 24 hours a day, the men, the machines, we all work 24 hours a day. But the amount of rubble is such that it will take time to clear. all of that, "he warned. 

Vivek Pandey, a border police spokesperson, quoted by The Times of India on Wednesday, said that if there were any survivors the greatest concern was that they were suffering from hypothermia, "which can be fatal in many cases. such conditions ". 

Hope despite everything   

Medical teams with oxygen cylinders, stretchers and emergency care equipment stationed in front of the tunnel stood ready to act as relatives of anguished victims scrutinized the operations.

Like Shuhil Dhiman, 47, whose brother-in-law Praveen Diwan, entrepreneur and father of three, went into the tunnel on Sunday morning with three other people shortly before the disaster. 

"We don't know what happened to it. We approached the tunnel but it is stuffed with tons of sleet. The tunnel opens up a steep slope and I think the water and sleet has entered in depth, "Shuhil Dhiman told AFP. 

"I hope despite everything," he said, "the authorities are doing their best but the situation is beyond all capacity." 

Ramesh Negi, a trader, was enjoying a great morning sun on Sunday when he heard a deafening rumble accompanying a huge wall of water, which crashed into a bridge immediately wiped off the map. 

Dozens of workers who were building a dam in the riverbed, as well as shepherds with their cattle on the mountainsides, were engulfed by the flood, he recalled. 

"From all sides, it was dust and screams," the 36-year-old told AFP.

"We tried to alert the breeders but they were blown by the force of the wind, before being submerged by water and sleet. We could not predict what happened."

With AFP

The summary of the week

France 24 invites you to come back to the news that marked the week

I subscribe

Take international news everywhere with you!

Download the France 24 application

google-play-badge_FR