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Umar Bacha |
Hamayun Babar
August 22, 2023
Another team of the Pakistan Army’s Special Services Group (SSG) is on the way to the Allai tehsil of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Battagram where six schoolchildren are among eight people stuck in a cable car after two of its wires snapped early morning on Tuesday.
Assistant Commissioner Jawad Hussain confirmed the update to
Dawn.com, adding that troops of the military’s rapid response force are also on the ground.
Earlier, two helicopters belonging to the Pakistan Army and the Pakistan Air Force arrived at the site for a rescue operation. Two attempts were made to move towards the cable car. One of the helicopters has now moved away.
Meanwhile, a
Dawn.com correspondent present at the site said the second backup helicopter that continued to hover above the cable car also left after a while. Later, he said, he could see a helicopter approaching the cable car with a “net”.
Sling operation
The rescuer is suspended with a sling and approaches the affected site/person. He or she is tied with the rescuer or another sling is used to hoist the person. Meanwhile, the helicopter pilot and rescuer have to be cautious of the downdraft (air that is deflected towards the ground) that is generated by the chopper’s propellers.
Shariq Riaz Khattak, a rescue official, told
Reuters that the rescue mission is complicated due to gusty winds in the area and the fact the helicopters’ rotor blades risk further destabilising the lift. Moreover, sunset in Battagram is expected at 6:48pm.
Similarly, Ghulamullah, chairman of the Allai valley area, told
Geo News that “every time the helicopter lowered the rescuer closer to the chairlift, the wind from the helicopter would shake and disbalance the chairlift making the children scream in fear”.
Tanveer Ur Rehman, a local government official, explained to
AFP that “this is a delicate operation that demands meticulous accuracy. The helicopter can not approach the chairlift closely, as its downwash (air pressure) might snap the sole chain supporting it”.
Meanwhile, AC Hussain said: “If the helicopters fail to rescue the passengers, Rescue 1122 teams will make efforts from the ground via a snorkel.
“We have also called locals from Shangla’s Besham who have experience in conducting similar rescue operations near the Diamer Bhasha dam.”
He added that Rescue 1122 teams are meanwhile trying to spread nets under the cable car.
The incident occurred in the Allai tehsil early morning — estimated between 7am and 8am — when six students and two locals were on the way to school.
They got stuck when two wires of the cable car snapped, the assistant commissioner said, adding that the cable car was privately run by locals for transportation across rivers as there were no roads or bridges in the area.
The cable car is dangling in the middle of a deep ravine surrounded by towering mountains and a rocky surface, along with the Jhangri river beneath it.
Details regarding the height at which the passengers are stuck is not yet clear. The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) estimated it to be 1,000-2,000ft.
