One killed, two injured in Mulund wall collapse

Mumbai: A 40-year-old woman died and two persons were injured after a wall of an adjoining structure collapsed on their house in the Hanuman Pada area of Mulund west in the early hours of Friday.

The deceased woman was identified as Laxmibai Katade. Laxmibai’s husband Raghunath Katade and her mother Bhaga Korate were injured in the incident.

They were taken to the nearby M T Agarwal Hospital. An official from the hospital said, “After Laxmibai was brought to the hospital, she fell unconscious and doctors tried to resuscitate her, but in vain. She was declared dead at 6.10am. The two injured were treated at the hospital for superficial injuries.”

The family belonged to the Guhire village in Ahmednagar district and had migrated to Mumbai for work.

The family of six lived in an informal settlement in the area, which falls under the Maharashtra Forest Department and has more than 300 such informal houses.

According to locals, quite a few residents from the area were shifted to a new place by the forest department and their houses were partially demolished so that no further encroachment happens on the land. It was the wall of one such partially demolished house that collapsed on the house where Laxmibai and her family lived.

Meanwhile, Revati Kulkarni, deputy director of Sanjay Gandhi National Park, said, “The area is heavily encroached and we have been in the process of rehabilitating those who are eligible for the rehabilitation. It is a heavy risk area and because the encroachment is on part of the hills, rocks may also fall. I have instructed my team to inspect other structures in the area and if any of those are found to be unsafe, we will take action.”

On the other hand, Avinash Bhandge, a local Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) worker, said, “We have written letters to the forest department in the past as well, asking them to properly demolish the houses where people have been removed, but they have only partially demolished it. It is a safety issue.”

Another local from the area, Raghunath Pote said, “Just this monsoon, a wall had collapsed here right next to the home where the incident happened, but nothing was cleared. The locals removed all of those debris on our own. Now also, the officials came, saw the spot and left. They did not say or do anything.”