Panchkula: 5 labourers injured as pile of soil collapses during excavation in Barwala

As many as five labourers, including three women and two men, were buried as a pile of soil collapsed during an excavation in Barwala Industrial Area, Sector 2, on Friday morning.

The labourers, who hailed from Bihar, had been working on the construction site for the past two months. The accident occurred as they were levelling a surface 15 feet below the ground level.

Rescue operations lasted for nearly an hour as authorities worked tirelessly to extract the trapped individuals. Among the injured are Guddi, 18, Poonam, 48, Phoolmati, 18, Devi Lal, 50, and Sharad, 35. Four of them sustained serious injuries and were rushed to Panchkula civil hospital, where they received treatment and were later discharged. Sharad sustained a leg fracture and remains at the hospital for treatment.

As per police, the workers were digging the basement of an under-construction building while an excavator machine was simultaneously removing soil. The workers had reportedly asked the JCB operator to stop the machine due to safety concerns, but their warnings were ignored. Moments later, the soil collapsed onto the workers, trapping them beneath the debris.

Police have initiated an investigation into the incident to determine the exact cause and ascertain accountability for the alleged negligence.

The incident comes close on the heels of a building collapse in Sohana village of Mohali, where two individuals lost their lives after being trapped under the debris. Excavation work was going on in the plot adjacent to the building, also owned by the arrested accused, causing the land to sink, leading to the tragedy.