The tunnel under construction partially collapsed around 3 p.m. Friday in Gwangmyeong, Gyeonggi Province. Two workers, a man in his 20s and another in his 50s, were working inside the tunnel at the time.
The younger worker was pulled out alive after nearly 13 hours of rescue efforts and was transported to a hospital with no major injuries. The older worker remained missing as of Saturday afternoon, while seven search dogs, cranes, drones, and other equipment were deployed in the ongoing search.
A colleague said, "He may have been inside a container at the time of the collapse." Rescue efforts have been hampered by rain and strong winds, which caused water to flow into the tunnel and raised concerns about the worker’s safety.
Roughly 2,400 residents in the nearby area were evacuated immediately after the collapse Friday afternoon. They were allowed to return home around midnight after safety inspections confirmed no risk to surrounding buildings.
Police and the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport are investigating the cause of the collapse and working to prevent further incidents in the area.
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