Srinagar: Hours after the nine on-duty employees working at the power station in Srisailam, Telangana state of India, were reported stuck following a massive fire incident on Thursday night, bodies of the six engineers have been recovered from an underground unit of the state Power Generation Corporation Limited.
By now, reports said that around 30 men from the Fire and Emergency department are on job to trace the missing workers.
Regarding the incident, Chief Engineer (Srisailam Left Bank Hydro Electric Station) Prabhakar Rao, told Indian Express that the six bodies were found near the crown tunnel, which is one of the two escape tunnels.
“The engineers are believed to have died of asphyxiation. At this moment, our only focus is the rescue operation. We will think of losses or damages later,” the report quoted Rao as having said.
According to reports, the engineers were on maintenance job of electric panels when the mishap took place.
Quoting officials, the report said that there were 20 employees on the ground floor of the powerhouse when the fire broke out. Initially, the employees tried to contain the blaze with extinguishers but the situation went out of control. While 11 employees ran out to safety through an emergency exit, nine were trapped inside as thick smoke engulfed the area.
“The tunnel and four-storey underground powerhouse are filled with thick smoke and fire and the rescue personnel have made several unsuccessful attempts since morning to go inside. Despite having oxygen cylinders, they found it difficult to enter the place,” Minister of Power for Telanagna, G Jagdishwar Reddy, who is camping at the spot, told Indian Express.
Reports said that soon after the incident, five fire services were pressed into service after a call was received by the state disaster response and fire services at 11:40 pm on Thursday.
Teams from Kothakotta, Mahababubnagar, Amarabad, Achampeta and Atmakur in Kurnool district, were sent on the spot to douse the flames.
In the basement of the pant, there are three floors; the bottom floor has turbines, the second and the third floors have generators and electrical panels, and the fourth floor or the ground floor is for the service.
Reports also suggest that Reddy and Telangana State Power Generation Corporation (Genco) chairman along with managing director D Prabhakar Rao have reached on the spot to take the cognizance of the incident.
Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi, country’s Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu, Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao and other state ministers have expressed grief over the incident.
Rao has also taken up the issue with Energy Minister and Genco Chairman and Managing Director D Prabhakar Rao about the relief and rescue measures.
Pertinently, Andhra Pradesh CM YS Jagan Mohan Reddy, who was scheduled to visit the Telangana, on Friday, has cancelled his trip following the fire incident.
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