11 injured in Bhiwandi cave-in; CM announces Rs 5 lakh compensation, minor among three dead

Two teams of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), a team of the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), ten fire engines, and personnel of different agencies are carrying out relief and rescue operations at the site in Valpada in Mankoli area.

By: PTI

Mumbai | Updated: May 1, 2023 02:10 PM IST

3 min read

Two bodies have been extricated from the rubble of the ground-plus-two-storey building in Wardhaman Compound that collapsed at around 1.45 pm, Thane Municipal Corporation (TMC) Regional Disaster Management Cell chief Avinash Sawant said in the evening

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A ground-plus-two-storey building inside Wardhman Compound in Thane district’s Bhiwandi collapsed on Saturday afternoon, killing three persons, including a minor girl, and injuring 11 others. The minor girl was identified as Sona Mukesh Kori. Several people are still trapped under the debris and their exact number remains unknown.

Chief Minister Eknath Shinde offered his condolences and announced compensation of Rs 5 lakh each to the kin of the dead. He also announced free medical treatment for all the injured victims.According to reports, the ground floor of the building functioned as a pickle godown where 15 labourers were working when the tragedy struck. The other two floors served as residential space with four families living on each floor.

On Saturday evening, the owner of the building, Indrapal Patil, was detained and the police began the process of filing an FIR. “Efforts to clear the debris as well as rescue operations are underway but we still do not know the exact number of people trapped under the debris. We are speaking to the manager of the godown but he too doesn’t know the exact number of workers who were inside the building at the time,” an officer from Narpoli police chowki said.

The building is believed to be over 10 years old. “We will know the exact age once the owner provides us with the building’s documents,” the officer added.

CM Eknath Shinde at the side of the Bhiwandi bulding cave-in. (Express photo by Deepak Joshi)

Meanwhile, a search has been launched for the contractor of the building. The building collapsed between 12.30 pm and 12.45 pm, with the rescue operation commencing around 2.30 pm. Besides personnel from the Bhiwandi fire brigade, a team of 35 officials from the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and 20 officials from the Thane Disaster Response Force (TDRF) rushed to the spot to carry out rescue operations.

Speaking to The Indian Express on Saturday evening, Sachin Dube, a senior official from TDRF, said, “When we first arrived at the spot from Thane, we were informed that around 22 people were trapped under the debris, of whom we have rescued 11. Three were found dead. However, the exact number of people still inside remains unknown.”

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Parmeshwar Kamble, whose wife and two and half year old son were rescued, told The Indian Express, “I was away at work while my wife, who was in the building, was feeding our baby when she felt ‘tremors’. She called me immediately and soon after the building collapsed.”

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Kamble was speaking to his wife on the phone until she was rescued along with their child an hour later. “Over phone, I kept telling her to stay strong and slowly move towards light,” he said. His wife and child survived with minor injuries.

After being rescued, most of the injured were rushed to Bhiwandi’s IGM hospital.

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