Three killed in Bhiwandi building collapse

Strap: 11 people pulled out alive while eight to nine people still buried under debris as rescue operations continue

Bhiwandi: Three persons were killed, 11 pulled out alive and about eight to nine people estimated to be still trapped, at the time of going to press, in the debris after a ground plus three storied building collapsed in Bhiwandi on Saturday afternoon.

The incident took place in Val village, Bhiwandi taluka, as the building in Vardhaman Compound collapsed at around 12.45 pm.

The deceased have been identified as Navnath Sawant, 43, a driver, who had come to a warehouse in the building, Lalita Ravi Mahto, 26, who resided on the second floor along with her husband and two children and the third death was reported late in the evening as five-year-old girl Sona Mukesh Kori was pulled out dead from the debris around 9.30 pm.

Lalita was also dead when the rescue workers reached her. Her body was pulled out from the debris six hours after the collapse. Her two children — Prince Kumar, 5, and Premraj alias Chiku, 7 — were rescued three hours after the incident and both were sent to Indira Gandhi Memorial hospital (IGM) in Bhiwandi.

The injured have been identified as Sonali Kamble, Shivkumar Kamble, Mukhtar Mansuri, Chiku Ravi Mahto, Prince Ravi Mahato, Vikas Yadav, Udaybhan Yadav, Anita, Ujjawal Kamble, who have been admitted to IGM hospital. All those admitted are said to have suffered minor injuries and in stable condition.

Thane Disaster Response Force (TDRF) and Bhiwandi Fire Brigade were on the spot and three bulldozers were pressed into rescue operations.

Although a team of TDRF reached the spot immediately after the collapse, another was delayed as it was stuck in a traffic jam at Kalher. Later in the evening, a team of National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) comprising 35 personnel, along with a dog squad, arrived and they also used drone cameras to locate those stuck in the debris.

A team of doctors from the IGM, along with three ambulances, reached the spot and Torrent Power officials disconnected electricity supply to the compound as a safety measure.

In the 10-year-old building, the ground and the first floor were used by MRK Food PVT Ltd as a warehouse to store packaged food items such as olives, sauces, pickles etc.

The second and the third floor each had 13 residential rooms and about three to four families lived there. Most of the rooms were occupied by workers of MRK PVT Ltd and they had left for work when the building collapsed.

Shiva Venu, 21, a worker in MRK Pvt Ltd said, “I was working in another building, and suddenly we heard a loud noise. My colleagues and I went out to find that building, which had our wareshouse, had collapsed. I rushed to the spot and called my manager and my brother to help in rescuing those trapped under the debris. I pulled out three people, including a child and a woman, in 20 minutes. I suffered leg injuries during the rescue operation.”

Soon after the collapse, locals rushed to the spot and started helping in whatever way they could till the rescue teams arrived, said residents of the area.

Heart-wrenching scenes ensued as the rescue workers toiled to reach the people stuck under the debris. One person trapped under the debris was offered drinking water through a narrow opening even as the rescue team kept consoling him.

Anita Kore, 30, who was rescued by the NDRF team, was crying for her child, who was still stuck under the debris. The rescue team consoled her saying that her kid would be rescued too.

DCP Navnath Dhavle, Bhiwandi said, “We received information about the incident, reached the spot to control the situation, and about 150 police personnel were deployed at the spot.”

Adhik Patil, tahsildar Bhiwandi, said, “Upon getting information about the collapse, we reached the spot accompanied by sub-divisional officer and other staffer. We learnt that the building was built in 2014 and is owned by Indrapal Patil, and the ground plus the first floor had been given to MRK Food Pvt Ltd as its warehouse while the rest of the building is for residential purposes.”

He added, “It comes under Val Gram panchayat, and we are trying to get in contact with MMRDA (Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority) officials to find out if the owner had procured appropriate permission from them.”

“Strict action will be taken against those found guilty of negligence and a case will be filed once the Panchnama report is acquired,” said Dhavale.