A tunnel collapsed. Toxic gas filled it. And now 25 lives hang in the balance.
Here's what happened.
On Monday, an under-construction tunnel at NHPC's Teesta Stage VI Hydroelectric Project in Sikkim's Namchi district caved in.
A suspected methane gas burst triggered the collapse.
10 people are confirmed dead.
25 workers remain trapped inside.
This isn't just a construction accident.
It's a race against an invisible enemy.
The collapse happened inside the ADIT-3 access tunnel at Samardung.
Workers and project officials were inside when the ground gave way.
But here's the part that's making rescue nearly impossible:
Every step forward risks another casualty.
Within hours, West Bengal stepped in.
CM Suvendu Adhikari called Sikkim CM Prem Singh Tamang directly.
Why? Because many of the trapped workers are feared to be from Jalpaiguri district, just across the border.
Adhikari has now sent a minister and the Darjeeling District Magistrate straight to the site.
His words: "My thoughts are with the families of the victims."
The NDRF has since moved in to lead the underground search, fighting gas pockets meter by meter.
Officials in Namchi have warned the death toll could still climb.
Search teams are working in near-impossible conditions — no visibility, poisoned air, and a tunnel that could give way again.
This is a hydro project meant to power homes.
Right now, it's a site where rescuers are risking their own lives to save others still buried beneath it.
The wait for news from inside that tunnel has never felt longer.
That's all for now!
