Another slab collapse at P&T Colony; no injuries

According to residents, portions of building B5, including the exterior eaves, facade and balcony, collapsed on Monday

Mumbai: Two months after a slab collapsed at a building in the P&T Colony in Sahar, a similar incident occurred on Monday evening.

Another slab collapse at P&T Colony; no injuries

According to residents, portions of building B5, including the exterior eaves, facade and balcony, collapsed around 7.30 pm on Monday, highlighting the ongoing deterioration they have repeatedly complained about. Built around 40 years ago, the ground-plus-one-storey building houses three families, and six residents were inside at the time of the collapse. All of them narrowly escaped harm.

“The residents, including a small child, were in the building, having dinner,” said Anand Nimangre, one of the residents. “Thankfully, as the slab did not fall inside, no one was hurt. But these repeated incidents make us fear that the authorities are waiting for a life to be lost to act.”

On September 30, a similar incident occurred in building B3, when protective eaves shattered onto the balconies of the homes. The residents had then written to the General Post Office (GPO) — the colony houses post office employees — but to no avail. The authorities inspected the damage to building B5 on Tuesday morning.

“After the previous incident, we wrote to the GPO to break down all the hanging eaves of the buildings to prevent such repeat incidents, but they did not complete the work,” said another resident, who did not want to be named. “That building has been issued a notice that it is in a dilapidated state, and the residents will be shifted. But only a few months ago, some repair and painting work had been done there. This shows that the work was not done properly, and they have wasted all that money.”

The residents added that they have been complaining about various issues, including leaks, cracks in the walls, poor roads, blocked sewage lines, and poor street lighting, for a long time.