Three persons were killed and at least another two were critically injured after a muti-storey under-construction residential building collapsed at Bellandur in south-east Bengaluru around 1 pm on Wednesday. Food, water and oxygen were provided to another person who was trapped inside the building.
All the other nine who were trapped inside were rescued, Addl.Commissioner of Police, East, P Harishekaran told reporters around 7 pm.
The injured were admitted to Sakra World hospital, TV reports said. NDRF personnel are part of the rescue and relief operations and fire tenders, ambulances were rushed to the spot.
NDRF personnel at work
According to eyewitnesses, the building fell on the security post of an adjacent building, which caused the death of 28-year-old Ashok, who was working as a security guard for the past nine years.
Another person who was watching a video on his mobile phone inside a pickup van parked near the building also succumbed to his injuries, an eyewitness Shankar said. Shankar recounted that the whole building collapsed within 10 seconds. He said buildings meant for PG accommodations were mushrooming in the area rapidly. "In the last three months only, there have been three such new buildings." He alleged that the builders compromised on safety aspects for rushing the construction process so that they can put them up for rent.
Residents of the adjacent building said the 'odd land' (close to 1200 square feet of area) on which the building was being erected was promised to be a private park for them by the builders. The residents said the construction process started only three months back and once the ground floor was built, families of construction workers started living there.
Abid, 26, who works in an office in the locality, rushed to the spot to help after one of his friends, who witnessed the collapse, informed him. "As soon as we reached the spot, there was dust all over. We heard a person shouting for help and another person's leg stuck in the debris. The other person whose back was full of blood could be seen. We took two of them to the hospital in an auto," Abid told TNM.
A BBMP official who was present at the spot, on condition of anonymity, said the building belonged to one Vinay Kumar.
MN Reddi, DGP Fire and Emergency services said on Twitter that four persons have escaped and four are believed to be trapped. He also said one person was rescued alive.
Four persons escaped. Four suspected trapped. One of them rescued by our Rescuers alive.
— M N Reddi, IPS (@DGP_FIRE) October 5, 2016
The building was reportedly under construction and labourers are believed to be trapped under the debris.
At least three fire and rescue services rushed to the spot and nearly 15 people have been rescued so far.
Well done @KarFireDept for rescuing 8 year old son of labourer who was trapped under debris of under construction bldg #Bengaluru pic.twitter.com/9stJSptIQR
— Gautam (@gautyou) October 5, 2016
Reddi also tweeted to say that Fire and Emergency Services and Disaster Response Force are involved in rescue operations.
Five storey under construction building collapsed at Bellandur. Fire& Emergency Services and Disaster Trespasser Force in rescue work. pic.twitter.com/FzxWNoxqD1
— M N Reddi, IPS (@DGP_FIRE) October 5, 2016
Four persons escaped. Four suspected trapped. One of them rescued by our Rescuers alive.
— M N Reddi, IPS (@DGP_FIRE) October 5, 2016
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The Hindu reports that building sanction permission was granted by BBMP last October. The newspaper quotes officials who said the quality of construction appeared poor.
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Mayor Padmavathi G who was at the spot told reporters that substandard material was the cause of the collapse. She also said that the building had more floors than what the BBMP had initially sanctioned.
"We will initiate stern action against the guilty, including officials," Padamavathi said.
Two floors of the five-floor building had been built illegally, Raghu Achar, Legislative Council Member told TV9.
This is a developing story.