Shillong, June 24: Rescue teams on Thursday retrieved one more body from the flooded illegal coal mine at Krem U Le, Umpleng in East Jaintia Hills. The navy divers detected and retrieved the body from the main shaft of the mine, after the NDRF and SDRF teams de-watered the shaft to safe diving level.
At least five miners got trapped inside an illegal coal mine in Sutnga Elaka after a tragic accident that took place on the night of May 30. So far, police have arrested the owner of the coal mine, Shining Langstang, and charged him for violation of the NGT order banning unscientific mining and transportation of coal.
Currently, over 50 personnel from National Disaster Response Force (NDFR), State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), District Disaster Response Force (DDRF), Indian Navy, Fire and Emergency Service and the police are camping at the site to search and retrieve the trapped miners.
This is the second body to be retrieved from the mine. One body was retrieved on June 16.
Three more bodies remain trapped inside the mine.
According to sources, the inquest was conducted by the Executive Magistrate on the spot and the dead body has been sent to Khliehriat Morgue for post mortem.
At the same time, the relatives of victims from Cachar, Barpeta and Kamrup (rural) in Assam and Kailashahar in North Tripura district have been informed through their respective Superintendent of Police (SPs) to inform the immediate family members of the victims trapped in the coal mine to identify the retrieved body.
Till date, no one has come forward for the identification of the recovered bodies.
Meanwhile, rescue teams on Thursday pumped out about 5.6 lakh litre of water from shaft no. 1 and about 12.15 lakh from shaft no. 2.
