23 die, 35 hurt in Mumbai as 117-yr-old building falls
The spate of building collapses continues in Mumbai this monsoon, as a 117-year old six-storey building in Bhendi Bazaar collapsed on Thursday morning, killing 23 people and leaving 35 injured. About 10 persons are still feared to be trapped under the debris as rescue operations continued till late Thursday night.
The Husaini Mahal building, which is located on Pakmodia Street in south Mumbai, came down like a pack of cards at 8.30 in the morning, trapping residents under the rubble. Besides the families who resided there, the building also housed a sweet shop, a food kitchen and a play school on the ground floor.
According to civic officials, the building, which was constructed before 1940, was a grade A cessed building. It had been declared dangerous by Mhada and notices were issued to residents to vacate the building way back in 2011.
Due to fire in the debris, caused from the hotel kitchen on the ground floor, the entire area was covered with smoke, which also posed a hindrance in rescue work and may have suffocated victims trapped, said fire officials. Five firemen and one NDRF man received injuries in the line of duty. According to local residents, the death toll could have been higher had the collapse taken place an hour later. “There was a playschool in the ground floor which starts at 9.30 am. Had the collapsed happened after it started, the casualties would have been very high,” said local resident Ammar Razvi.