Rain,crowd hamper rescue work

But it was only after speaking to BMC officials and other locals that they realised the figure of those trapped could be 100. “Once my men reached the site,they told me it was a much bigger collapse. We were told that 22 families were trapped inside. Then we took the call to send in backup. Two teams left Pune at 11 am and reached Mumbai at 2 pm,” he said.

“Like at Lucky Compound in Mumbra,this is also a pancake or sandwich collapse. The difference is that this building is a legal one,” said Avasthy.

With the entire force in place,the first thing that the NDRF did was to chalk out a plan of action with the BMC. “We sat down and decided to work our way down from the top. Accordingly,JCBs cleared the heavy rubble away first,allowing us to reach the survivors,” said Deputy Commandant Sachidanand Gawade,who supervised the operations. “We could hear voices of those trapped inside calling out to us. It is great that a lot of people have been rescued alive. It is precious to see the relief on the faces of family members when someone is pulled out alive,” he said.

By evening,the rescue teams had worked their way past at least two storeys. “We plan to go floor by floor to find survivors. The rain has slowed down efforts a bit but the greater impediment is the number of people who have gathered. We have to take into consideration their emotions and the fact that they want to help. Gradually,as night falls,the crowd will thin and then we will hit our groove. The only other impediment is that we are working very carefully but slowly,slicing each portion of rubble and slipping our victim locator cameras through the crevices to locate survivors. We have not yet had to call sniffer dogs,but they are ready to be pressed into action,” said Gawade.

He said the building had collapsed in different directions. “The water tank on the terrace fell straight down the front of the building while other parts fell in other directions. Only very small portion to the right is still standing but we will have to demolish that as well,” said Gawade.

He said he was very happy when three young women were pulled out at 7 pm without serious injuries. “Our air bags proved very useful while rescuing them. The arm of one of the women was trapped under a concrete slab,so we used the air bag to free her. All three were able to talk,which means there was no blood loss. Had they lost blood,they would not have been conscious or be able to talk,” he added.

But not everyone may be as lucky. The odds of survival will dwindle drastically once the operations complete in 24 hours. “Chances of survival will decrease as the hours go by but we are hoping for the best. Oxygen will definitely decrease and not everyone may have access to food and water. Those who are still surviving under the rubble will surely survive,” said Avasthy.