Kolkata: Even as the rescue operations to evacuate the 41 workers who remain trapped at the Silkyara tunnel in Uttarakhand have reached its fag end, the incident brought back horrific memories to 70-year-old Jagdish Kahar, who along with 65 others, remained trapped in a flooded coal mine in West Bengal’s Raniganj area for around four days in 1989.

A resident of Mahabir Colony in Raniganj, Kahar was a worker in the coal mine.

“It was a Sunday, and we were working in section 21 in the night shift. At around 2am, water started gushing in through section 27. Workers started fleeing, and there was chaos in the mine as the news spread. At least 65 of us got trapped, and then the long wait in the mine began before we could be rescued,” Kahar told HT over the phone.

On November 13, 1989, 200 workers were breaking coals in the mine by triggering blasts. However, one blast caused the water table to break (the underground boundary between the soil surface and groundwater), and water gushed into the mine, flooding it within minutes.

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“The phone lines were still working and there was also electricity. We could speak with the rescuers. But the tension was running high. There were 60 of us in section 21. We were told to join five others trapped in section 27. Over the next four days, we stuck together till we were rescued,” he said.

Among the trapped was also Bala Kumar– Kahar’s Uncle. He is now in his late 80s and lives in the same house in Raniganj.

“We had to keep our morale high and find ways to remain cheerful as every minute seemed like an hour. Even though we could communicate with the rescuers, we were not certain as to when we would be rescued. We used to crack jokes and keep smiling. If anyone got nervous, all of us would jump in to boost his morale. Because one weak link may break the morale of everyone,” Kahar said.

On the third day, the trapped miners were asked to reach section 65, which was not so deep from the sea level and from where evacuation would be easier. While section 21 was at least 300 feet deep below the ground, the depth of section 65 was just around 80-90 feet, according to the survivors.

“We were told that there was an old bore well and that we needed to find it. Food and water would be supplied through that pipe before we could be rescued. It was at least 2-3 km away from where we were. But how to find the pipe? We told the rescuers that they need to lower a light bulb so that it becomes easier to locate,” Kahar said.

The miners found their way through a mesh of tunnels inside the mine under the ground. Upon reaching the spot, the rescuers had already dropped some fruits including apples and oranges, he said.

“As we were closer to the ground, we could hear the sound of machines and even people. It was a huge relief, but we were still not sure how long the rescue operation would take. As every one of us had a torch, we decided to light one torch per day and sit together. We planned this so that we have light for 65 days,” said Kahar.

On the third day, the workers could even speak to their family members over phones inside the mine.

“On the fourth day, we heard some loud noise of drilling followed by a loud thud of falling debris. We all got scared and none were ready to go and check out. So, we decided that all of us would go together. To our utter joy, we found that a hole had been made with a drilling machine, and now our rescue was just a matter of time,” he added.

All the trapped miners were then rescued one by one with the help of a makeshift capsule lift.

“When we were coming out one by one, thousands of people, who had gathered there started cheering ‘Jai Bajrangbali, Jai Bhagwan’. For us, the rescuers were like God. And the people looked at us as if we were God who have cheated death,” added Kahar.

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In Uttarakhand’s Uttarkashi, 41 men have been stranded inside a 2km stretch of the 4.5km Silkyara-Barkot tunnel on the National Highway since November 12, after a portion of the under-construction tunnel collapsed.

In the 12 days since, there have been multiple attempts to engineer methods to evacuate the workers, including the use of an American auger machine to drill through close to 60 metres of debris from the Silkyara end. Till now, rescuers have drilled up to 46.8 meters in the Silkyara tunnel.

Officials have mentioned that no specific timelines should be assumed, however, if all goes well and the rescue work does not face any obstruction, then workers will be out by tomorrow afternoon.