Six labourers killed as lift collapses at building construction site in Thane

Six of them died, while one of them was seriously injured. While five victims have been identified as Mahendra Choupal (32), Rupesh Das (21), Haroon Shaikh (42), Mithilesh (35) and Karidas (38), the sixth person is yet to be identified. The injured, identified as Sunil Das (21), is undergoing treatment at the district government hospital.

#WATCH | Maharashtra: Morning visuals from Thane where seven people died after a lift collapsed in an under-construction building pic.twitter.com/9HpjYFUJQV

— ANI (@ANI) September 11, 2023

Abhijit Bangar, municipal commissioner of Thane, told The Indian Express, “Total seven persons were in the lift, of which five died on the spot, and one of the them died while being taken to hospital. One person is undergoing treatment and we are shifting him to a private hospital.”

“We are yet to verify whether the lift that collapsed was a makeshift structure or was that a proper lift inside the building. We have already lodged an FIR against the builder since this is a very serious case,” Bangar said. Police have launched an investigation into the incident.

The project is by Runwal Group company, Dhruva Woollen Mills Pvt Ltd, which said in a statement, “An unfortunate incident happened at 6.15 pm today at our under-construction site in Balkum Thane. A lift carrying seven workers from the 40th floor suddenly collapsed from the 13th floor. The said elevator had been under continuous surveillance and is serviced under an existing annual maintenance contract. The last proactive maintenance was done on August 23 where due oiling, servicing, lift room check-up, brake settings, car liner checking, up-on limit switch checking were satisfactorily done by the vendor.”

Adding that the assessment report “states the good condition of the lift”, the company said, “We are cooperating with police and other departments in the inquiry proceedings. We have extended all rescue and support operations at the site and are investigating the incident at our end as well, with our team of experts.”