Rescue teams in Uttarakhand are battling against time to evacuate 41 workers who have been trapped under debris for over 170 hours with limited food and communication following a tunnel collapse.

Officials on Saturday began preparations to drill a vertical hole from the top of the hill to reach to the trapped workers. “We are trying to make a vertical track from the top of the tunnel. A point at the top of the tunnel has been identified from where drilling will start soon. This track is about 1,000-1,100 metres long. Simultaneously, we are also conducting a survey to know how much time it will take. As per our calculations, the track should be ready by tomorrow afternoon,” Border Roads Organisation (BRO)’s Major Naman Narula told reporters on Saturday.

A high-performance drilling machine was brought here from Indore on Saturday to pierce through the rubble of the collapsed tunnel and was being assembled before it is deployed to resume drilling, officials said. Drilling was stopped on Friday evening after officials heard a sudden “cracking sound” from the machine.

Bhaskar Khulbe, former advisor to the Prime Minister, said the workers are likely to be rescued in four-five days with concerted efforts of the agencies. “But if the gods are kind enough, it could happen even earlier than that,” he said.