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Officials revealed new details to KTLA Thursday morning regarding the horrifying tunnel collapse in Los Angeles’ Wilmington area.
It was shortly before 8pm on Wednesday night, LAFD crew responded to the initial report of the collapse at the Industrial Tunnel in the 1700 block of South Figuero Ast Street. The tunnel was filled with workers at the time. They were about 400 feet below the surface, about 6 miles away from the only access point in the tunnel.
Lonnie Villanueva, interim chief of the Los Angeles Fire Department, explained that the collapse occurred after what was allegedly a “structural disorder,” but further details remain under investigation. “The tunnel lining failed about five to six miles, locking in what we thought was 27 people, but four more people joined the rescue.
Over 100 LAFD responders came to the scene to help with a tricky rescue. Some of the workers separated within the tunnel had to climb a mountain of loose soil, 12-15 feet, and join their colleagues on the other side.
“The material blocked the exit from the tunnel,” said Michael Chee of the LA County Sanitary District. “But fortunately, the tunnel is 18 feet in diameter, so despite the material coming down from above, there was plenty of room for them to circulate that material, from which there was a five-mile walk or transport from the tunnel.”
They then grew up in a group of eight using cranes, and by 9:20pm all 31 workers were safely extracted and evaluated by the emergency team. Many have been seen hugging each other and no injuries have been reported.
“We are blessed in Los Angeles today,” Mayor Karen Bass said. “No one got hurt, everyone was safe and I feel very good when this was a great outcome of what started as a very scary night.”
Officials told KTLA’s Carlos Herrera that the wastewater tunnel site is part of the LA County Sanitation District Clearwater Project, spreading seven miles, 200 feet underground, and is intended to help modernize wastewater infrastructure. Additionally, it will be finished at Royal Palms Beach in San Pedro.
However, for now, work on the $700 million project has stopped.
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