Meghalaya dam tragedy toll rises to five; more feared dead

The death toll in the flood fury in Meghalaya's Myntdu-Leshka Hydel Project rose to five
today even as ten missing workers are also feared to have been killed. "Today one more body was recovered. Ten others are still untraced. We are afraid that they may not be alive," project manager Elias Lyngdoh said over phone from the construction site of the ambitious Rs900 crore 84MW project in Jaintia Hills district.
 
Five workers were missing from the dam's tunnel while six others got trapped in the power house when there was a sudden overflow of water following incessant rains on Thursday evening. Three of the bodies buried in debris inside the power house located downstream were recovered yesterday along with the body of a driver whose vehicle was smashed by a landslide.

Superintendent of police MK Singh said four teams, including police personnel and local villagers, are carrying out rescue operations on the spot. A high level team led by the state's additional chief secretary W M S Pariat, who is also chairman of the state's electricity board, today visited the site to take stock of the situation.

Even the loss could cross Rs5 crore mark, as costly equipment and machinery were damaged, officials said the dam, tunnel and power house building are not damaged.