Worker at Thumbe Dam Falls into River, Rescued After Three Hours
 
News: Mounesh Vishwakarma 
Pics: Karthik B C Road
Daijiworld Media Network – Bantwal (PS)
 
Bantwal, Jun 9: A labourer working at the Thumbe vented dam had a close shave when he slipped and fell into the Netravati river while working at the dam here on Thursday June 9. He was rescued later.
 
Santosh, a native of Haveri district fell into the river while removing the iron gates at the dam. He was washed away in the currents but luckily he grabbed at a group of small boulders and hung on.

The incident occured at around 10.30 am, and the labourer had to wait on the boulders amidst the turbulent river for about three hours before the fire brigade could reach the spot.

With the arrival of the monsoon, the work on removing the iron gates fixed to the dam began on May 25. One Khader took up the contract, engaging 11 labourers for the work.

The iron gates are being lifted with the help of a pulley. On Thursday, when the work was going on, the hook to lift the gates was not fixed on time, and all the labourers lost control when they pulled the rope of the pulley. Ten of them fell on to the dam, while one, Santosh, fell into the river.

The water level was 9.5 feet and Santosh was washed away due to the gushing waters. But luckily, about 50 metres away he held on to a group of small boulders and escaped. 
 

Rescue operation

Though initially country boats were used to rescue Santosh, it soon became a wasted effort as the water from the dam was flowing in full force and restricting them from moving forward. A life jacket was then supplied with the help of a rope and one window of the dam was closed to lower the level of the water. Later, the fire brigade with the help of a mechanized boat reached the spot where Santosh was stranded and rescued him. He was then admitted to a hospital as he sustained injuries to his hands and legs.
 
Bantwal rural police station SI Rafiq and others arrived at the spot. On investigation, it was found that safety measures at the work site were inadequate. Though the labourers have been working under contract for many years, the contractor has still not supplied them with life jackets as a minimum safety measure.