5 storey building collapses in Bhendi Bazar, Mumbai; 7 killed, 15 injured, many feared trapped
A five-story residential building in the congested Bhendi Bazar area of south Mumbai collapsed today, killing at least seven people and injuring 15 others, officials said. About 30 others were feared trapped. Fire brigade officials said some nine families lived in the dilapidated building. Some media reports said it also housed a play school but children had not arrived yet when the tragedy occurred. This could not be confirmed immediately. The building, which also had six godowns on the ground floor, crumbled at around 8:30 a.m. It’s not clear if the heavy rains that inundated Mumbai this week had weakened the building, said to be some 50 years old. What remained was a large mound of concrete rubble and steel rods encircled by other houses, including what appeared to be a tall building. Rescue workers in hard hats clambered up the mound and hammered at concrete slabs with hammers to reach underneath. Cranes and bulldozers were also deployed to scoop up the debris. Residents helped with bare hands. At least three people were pulled out alive.A 45-member team of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) is carrying out the rescue operation with the help of fire brigade personnel. The injured were carried in stretchers before being transferred to ambulances.
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