Thiruvananthapuram: If the scuba divers of Kerala fire force are trained to tackle challenging depths, they are dealing with darkness and debris; a sticky, nauseating mass of filth in their rescue operation at Thampanoor.
They are equipped with a diving set and self-contained underwater breathing apparatus, but rescuers hardly have any space to move around in the section of the canal that passes underneath the station.

“Imagine walking into a thick pile of garbage with an oxygen cylinder of 2,200-litre capacity inside a dark tunnel clogged to the brim with all kinds of trash. You are looking for a man here, who may be near or he may have been swept away. You will never know until you clear this mess to have a good look at what is around you,’’ a fire safety officer who is part of the rescue operations said.
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A man can barely stand upright in the tunnel and more than half of it is filled with waste. They are battling strong flow, pitch dark space and are stumbling upon rock and broken wooden logs. “The capacity of the oxygen cylinder is for 20-30 mts. One has to squat and pick up trash from the tunnel. It is a very stressful process. You are carrying a breathing apparatus set and you can’t even stand properly. We are always trained to improvise on the job, and that’s what we are doing here,’’ the official said.

Another official who is coordinating the efforts said the bottleneck-like situation was new for the rescuers. “The depth of the waterbody and regulating our breath are our usual challenges. This is different, depth is not much of an issue here,’’ he said.

A control room would be set up at the site to coordinate the rescue efforts being undertaken by fire and rescue services and NDRF personnel, officers said.
Water flows into this canal from Bakery Junction, Mosque Lane where untreated sewage from housing colonies is also pumped into the canal. The divers who waded into the canal came out dripping with slime and muck. The officials are hopeful of making some headway further soon.