Thiruvananthapuram: The rescue operation of sanitation worker N Joy, on Sunday went futile, confirmed by the scuba diving team, that no human remains were found at the site shown in the visuals captured by the robotic camera.
Footage captured by a robotic camera from the 140-meter-long Amayizhanchan canal beneath the railway station tracks was approximately 20 meters from where Joy fell—according to source footage pointed at the presence of a human leg. However, the lack of visibility was a challenging impediment to verifying the visuals.
The search and rescue operation, led by a 100-member team from the NDRF, commenced shortly after 11 am on Saturday. Bandicoot robots, developed by tech startup Gen Robotics for the Kerala Water Authority, have been deployed for cleaning drainage lines. These robots were brought in on Saturday night after initial searches by the scuba team on the opposite bank of the railway station tunnel proved unsuccessful. Additional searches involved opening manholes on the railway platforms and removing large piles of garbage using the Bandicoot robots.
Joy, a contract laborer from Marayamuttom, went missing while clearing a garbage pile at Thampanoor Central Railway station amidst heavy rain. He was swept away by the rising water flow despite efforts by bystanders to rescue him with a rope thrown from the canal banks navy is expected to arrive this evening to commence rescue operations.
Efforts to rescue Joy, who was swept away while cleaning the Amayizhanchan canal in Kerala’s capital, have been fraught with challenges. The operation, suspended early on Sunday morning, resumed after more than 20 hours. However, congestion caused by waste accumulation in the tunnel where the worker is trapped has complicated the mission.
The National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) deployed two robots equipped with cameras to inspect the manhole adjacent to the railway line near the canal. These robots are critical for clearing away long-deposited wastes and debris and conducting thorough examinations
The worker remains trapped in a tunnel filled with waste, posing a major obstacle to the rescue operation. Despite attempts by scuba divers to penetrate 30 meters into the tunnel, their efforts were thwarted by darkness and congestion, forcing them to crawl on their knees.
Priority is now on clearing the congested tunnel to facilitate further entry. The exact whereabouts and condition of the trapped worker remain unknown.
Joy and his colleagues were hired by a contractor commissioned by the Railways to clean this particular section of the canal. He was swept away while working under a 200-meter-long tunnel that runs beneath the railway tracks at the central station
