Nine bodies have been recovered from the fire-ravaged 6×150 MW Srisailam Left Bank underground hydel station in Telangana, CISF (Central Industrial Security Force) officials revealed.
They said that a 39-member Fire Rescue and Disaster Management team led by Commander Siddarth Raha was dispatched by the CISF National Industrial Security Academy at Hakimpet to the Srisailam Dam. They left at 8.35 a.m. and reached the dam site at 1 p.m.
“They recovered nine bodies from the tunnel and controlled the fire and smoke”, a senior CISF official said.
According to information reaching Hyderabad, a short-circuit in the terminal panel of the fourth unit of the hydel station on Thursday night is considered to be the main cause of the accident. However, the authorities of TS-Genco said they would arrive at a conclusion only after finding out what exactly happened.
The staff that was present at the spot tried to control the fire with the extinguishers but all of their efforts were in vain. After which they contacted Chairman and Managing Director of TS-Genco D. Prabhakar Rao, who rushed there along with a team of top Genco executives in the night.
Telangana Minister for Energy G. Jagadish Reddy also rushed to the spot in the night. A thick smoke that caused zero visibility obstructed fire-fighting and fire personnel managed to gain entry into the shallow unit after three aborted attempts, he said.
In a statement, Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao expressed shock over the accident. “The CM is eliciting information on the accident on a regular basis and wished that all those who are trapped in the plant come out safely,” the CMO said. He spoke to Mr. Prabhakar Rao and Mr. Reddy about the rescue work.
Mr. Rao has ordered a probe by Crime Investigation Department of police.
