World’s largest-diameter boring machine put into use for Yangtze River railway tunnel

China's domestically developed, world's largest-diameter vertical shaft boring machine "Qiming" was officially put into operation in Taicang City of east China's Jiangsu Province on Tuesday, for the Chongming-Taicang Yangtze River Tunnel project.

The "Qiming" shaft boring machine has a digging diameter of 24 meters, a main unit height of approximately 13 meters, and a maximum digging depth of 75 meters.

At the operation site, which is 200 meters from the south bank of the Yangtze River, the machine will dig vertically for over 50 meters to complete Shaft No.2 of the Chongming-Taicang Yangtze River Tunnel.

According to technicians, Shaft No. 2 is equivalent to a maintenance station for "Linghang", China's domestically developed, world's largest-diameter high-speed-rail shield tunneling machine, which has already excavated over 10,000 meters along the underwater railway channel.

However, the geological environment at this location is complex, posing extremely high safety risks during construction for vertical excavation.

Therefore, the "Qiming" machine is equipped with multiple innovative technologies such as tunneling self-adaptation and assembly self-synchronization, successfully solving major technical problems of invisibility, intangibility, and inaccuracy in ultra-deep water-rich composite strata.

Application of the machine promotes upgrade of ultra-deep vertical shaft construction from the traditional excavation mode to an intelligent construction mode, according to officials. "We have adopted the operation mode of minimal manpower above ground and no manpower underground, which allows us to tunnel in both soft and hard rock earth structures. The machine can handle both very soft and rough terrains, making it highly adaptable to various geological formations," said Fu Bowei, deputy manager of the Chongming-Taicang Yangtze River Tunnel Project under China Railway Tunnel Group Co., Ltd.

The Chongming-Taicang Yangtze River Tunnel runs 14.25 kilometers in total mileage, with 13.2 km planned for boring. Once operational, it will allow high-speed trains to pass beneath the Yangtze River without reducing speed.

The Tunnel, connecting Chongming in Shanghai with Taicang in Jiangsu Province, is expected to be completed by the end of 2026. As a key project on the Shanghai-Nanjing section of the Shanghai-Chongqing-Chengdu High-Speed Railway, it will significantly reduce the travel time between cities along the Yangtze River such as Shanghai, Nanjing and Hefei.

World’s largest-diameter boring machine put into use for Yangtze River railway tunnel

The death toll from ongoing Israeli attacks on Lebanon has risen to 634, including 91 children and 47 women, while 1,586 people have been wounded, Lebanese Health Minister Rakan Nasreddine said at a televised press briefing on Wednesday.

According to Nasreddine, the ongoing hostilities have also severely affected the health sector. He reported 22 attacks on medical facilities and services, including incidents targeting Red Cross ambulances.

The minister added that 15 health workers have been killed and 45 others wounded since the escalation began.

Meanwhile, the conflict has displaced 816,000 Lebanese, according to figures announced by Minister of Social Affairs Haneen Sayed at the same press briefing.

Sayed said that 816,000 people have registered on the ministry's relief platform as displaced. Of them, about 126,000 people are currently sheltering in 589 designated centers across the country.

Sayed added that the government is working on the ground to guide displaced families to available centers and arrange transportation to ensure they reach safe locations.

At least 17 people were injured in Israeli airstrikes targeting multiple areas in Beirut's southern suburbs, Lebanon's Health Ministry reported Wednesday.

In retaliation, Hezbollah started the "Al-Asf Al-Ma'koul" operations, launching rockets intensively toward northern Israel, according to Lebanon's National News Agency.

The group said it launched rocket salvos at multiple Israeli military sites, including the Northern Command headquarters at the Dado base, the Ein Zeitim base, and targets near Safed, Kiryat Shmona, Nahariyya, Haifa, and Lake Tiberias.

Meanwhile, the Israeli military said it began a "large-scale attack wave of strikes" on Beirut's southern suburb on Wednesday night in response to Hezbollah's rocket launches.

On March 2, Hezbollah announced the launch of rockets from Lebanon toward Israel for the first time since a ceasefire was declared on Nov 27, 2024.

Meanwhile, the Israeli army launched what it described as an "offensive military campaign" against Hezbollah, carrying out intense airstrikes on multiple Lebanese areas and border ground incursions.

Death toll from Israeli attacks in Lebanon rises to 634