2 weeks ago
Rescuers Race Against Time for Man Trapped After Mumbai Landslide
In Mumbai, a big part of a hillside broke apart and crashed down onto homes below.
Sadly, seven people died, and several others got trapped under the heavy rocks and rubble.
One man, Saddam Hussain Shaikh, is still trapped beneath a huge boulder that fell on his small home.
Rescue workers from special emergency teams started saving people on Wednesday morning at 5 o'clock.
More than 30 hours later, they are still working to reach him.
The rescue is very difficult because the lanes are extremely narrow and the ground is shaky.
Big machines and cranes cannot reach the spot because it is on a hilltop far from the road.
So the workers have to break the huge rocks with hammers and dig with shovels and their hands.
The rescue teams are worried that the man's chance of surviving is getting very low.
But they are racing against time and have not given up.
A hillock above Gaushiya chawl in Mumbai's Kurla area collapsed over 30 hours ago, killing seven and trapping several people.
Saddam Hussain Shaikh remains trapped beneath a huge boulder that fell on his shanty.
The rescue operation began at 5 am on Wednesday, August 12, and has not yet been called off.
NDRF and Mumbai Fire Brigade teams face narrow 2- to 2.5-foot passages, shaky ground, and stacked boulders at the hilltop site.
Heavy machinery cannot reach the site, so rescuers are cutting boulders manually with hammers and digging with shovels and hands.
- Who
- Saddam Hussain Shaikh, trapped under the boulder, and rescue personnel from the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and Mumbai Fire Brigade (MFB).
- What
- A hillock above Gaushiya chawl collapsed, killing seven people and trapping several others; a rescue operation continues to free a man trapped under a huge boulder.
- Where
- The hillock above Gaushiya chawl in the Kurla area of Mumbai.
- When
- Over 30 hours after the landslide; the rescue operation began at 5 am on Wednesday, August 12, and is still ongoing.
- Why
- The hillock above the densely populated, mountainous area came crashing down, burying shanties under boulders and debris.
Key facts
- Incident
- Landslide on hillock above Gaushiya chawl
- Location
- Gaushiya chawl, Kurla area, Mumbai
- Fatalities
- 7
- Person still trapped
- Saddam Hussain Shaikh
- Rescue operation began
- 5 am, Wednesday, August 12
- Rescue agencies
- National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), Mumbai Fire Brigade (MFB)
- Site access
- Hilltop about 2 km from base, no proper road access
- Key challenges
- Narrow 2- to 2.5-foot passages, shaky ground, manual cutting of boulders
Quotes
NDRF official
Representative of the National Disaster Response Force involved in the rescue operation.
“It is extremely difficult to cut through such large boulders manually. In such mountainous conditions, when a person is trapped beneath huge boulders and debris and has remained there for a prolonged period, the chances of survival are very low.”
indianexpress.com
“In some portions, there is barely a 2- to 2.5-foot passage, making it extremely difficult for our personnel to enter, move around, and carry out the search.”
indianexpress.com
Ravindra Ambulgekar
Chief Fire Officer of the Mumbai Fire Brigade.
“The hilltop is nearly 2 km from the base of the hill, which is the last point accessible to vehicles. Rescue personnel therefore have to walk up and down the slope to reach the site and transport equipment and supplies. This is a mammoth task which is contributing to slow progress of the operation.”
indianexpress.com











