India 'rat hole' cave race against time as divers retrieve body in desperate search for miners
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Divers have retrieved the body of one of at least nine miners trapped inside a flooded coal mine in India as they race against time to save workers stuck in a "rat hole". The miners became trapped on Monday when water gushed in from a nearby unused mine in the Umrangso area in Dima Hasao district, about 125 miles south of the state capital, Guwahati.
“Army deep divers have found and retrieved one body from the flooded mine. The divers will go into the mine again to continue their search operations,” said Kaushik Rai, a local government minister who is monitoring the rescue efforts. Nearly 100 rescuers from the police, navy, army and the National Disaster Response Force are battling adverse conditions and taking turns searching inside the 300-foot -deep mine. Braving the winter chill in the Barail mountain range, the divers are lowered into the narrow mine by cranes to search its dark flooded interior.
The navy is also sending in remotely operated vehicles to examine the mine. “High suction pumps are being flown into the site by Indian Air Force helicopters to aid in pumping out the water from the mine,” Rai said. On Tuesday, rescuers found three helmets, some slippers and a few other items. The water in the mine is estimated to be 100 feet deep. Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said on the social media platform X that the mine appeared to be illegal and that police had arrested one person as they investigate the case.
