A worker involved in the demolition of the Chennai Silks building, which had caught fire on May 31, reportedly died during the demolition process.
Sarath, who hails from Krishnagiri district, was operating a jaw cutter machine which was being used in the demolition process.
This comes days after a portion of the seven-storey building had collapsed by itself. Four floors had caved in after the building was ravaged by fire that took 38 hours to put out. The demolition of the precariously standing building started on June 2.
The process was being carried out by the Chennai Corporation, Public Works Department, technical experts from IIT and Parveen Traders, a private entity.
Explaining the process of demolition to The News Minute, Peer Mohammed from Parveen Traders had said that the primary tool that would be used for the work were jaw cutters.
“The machine is called Volvo EC 460 and it expands to a height of 26 meters. The height of the building is about 31 meters. In order to reach the top floor of the building, we will lay debris on the ground and create a ramp,” he had said to TNM.
The body has been shifted to Royapettah hospital. The police are on the spot investigating the accident.
A major fire had broken out at the Chennai Silks building in T Nagar on May 31. While 12 people were rescued from the showroom, it took 38 hours, 450 fire personnel and around 7 lakh litres of water to contain the blaze. A suspected short-circuit is believed to have triggered the fire. Lack of ventilation, coupled with numerous building violations made the task of dousing the flames an enormous challenge for firefighters.