Mizoram quarry collapse: At least 8 bodies were recovered from the site of a stone quarry collapse at Maudarh village in Mizoram's Hnahthial district, about 160 km from Aizawl, a police official said on Tuesday.
According to Hnahthial DC R Lalremsanga, the bodies of 8 out of 12 people reported missing at the quarry site have been recovered from the debris of the massive landslip till 7 am on Tuesday. Search operations which were on all night will continue till all the missing persons are found, he added.
Lalremsanga, who is also the chairman of the district disaster management authority, said that a National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) team comprising 2 officers and 13 staff arrived at the spot on Tuesday morning.
Of the 12 persons reportedly missing, 4 were employees of ABCI Infrastructures Pvt Ltd while 8 others were contract employees, he said.
People present at the site said that troopers from Assam Rifles and Border Security Force (BSF) joined local police and people in the rescue operation.
On Monday, twelve people were feared trapped after the quarry collapsed in the Hnahthial region. The incident occurred at around 3 pm when labourers of ABCI Infrastructure private limited were working in the quarry at Maudarh village, Hnahthial, Superintendent of Police (SP), Vineet Kumar said.
He said that 13 people were working at the place when it caved in. While one worker managed to escape from the spot the remaining 12 failed to do so and were trapped under the debris, the SP said.
People familiar with the incident said that loose soil caved in from the above while the labourers were breaking and collecting the stones at the quarry. Volunteers of the Young Mizo Association (YMA) from nearby villages also rushed to the spot for the rescue operation, they said.
Maudarh is a small hamlet located about 23 km away from Hnahthial town. The company which is currently constructing a highway between Hnahthial and Dawn village collects stones or boulders from the quarry.
(With inputs from Agencies)
ALSO READ | Mizoram: Heroin worth Rs 5 lakh seized in Aizawl, Myanmar national held
ALSO READ | 140 exotic animals, drugs worth Rs 34.18 cr seized in Mizoram; 4 held
