Three people escape with injuries after slab collapses on a salon

Bhiwandi Three people, including a minor, were injured after the slab of one of the rooms in a ground-plus-three storeyed building in Thane collapsed on Monday morning

Bhiwandi Three people, including a minor, were injured after the slab of one of the rooms in a ground-plus-three storeyed building in Thane collapsed on Monday morning.

Thane, India - October 31, 2022: Three people injured after a slab from the first floor of Vikrant Society collapsed at Manisha Nagar. The injured have been admitted in Pramila Hospital, Kalwa, in Thane, Mumbai, India, on Monday, October 31, 2022. (Praful Gangurde/HT Photo) (HT PHOTO)

The first floor slab of Vikrant building collapsed on the salon situated on the ground floor. Civic authority claimed that illegal alterations in first floor flat led to the collapse.

The injured have been identified as Aayush Dhamne (20), resident of the first-floor flat which collapsed; Kadir Salmani (19), worked in the salon and Parth Patekar (16) who was at the salon taking a haircut at the time of the incident.

A portion of the ceiling of the first floor of the building crashed suddenly, leaving a hole in the building. Salmani and Patekar suffered injuries to their hand, leg and back. Locals from the vicinity rushed to help the injured. Fire brigade and police around were alerted at 10.55am who rushed to the spot along with the disaster management cell.

The civic official said that the 38-year-old structure housed six shops and two rooms on the ground floor, and six rooms each on all three floors. Approximately 50 to 60 people reside in the building.

G G Godepure, deputy municipal corporation, from the Thane Municipal Corporation’s encroachment department said that the collapse was due to illegal alterations made to the building.

“We had served a notice to the building in 2015. Thereafter a structural audit was carried out by the residents. During the preliminary survey today, it was revealed that internal changes or modifications carried out inside the first-floor room led to the collapse. We learned that the kitchen was shifted to the gallery while the kitchen was turned into the bedroom,” he said.

Godepure further added that the residents were evacuated after the incident and the building has been sealed.

Suresh Jadhav, chairman of the society, said, “We had carried out a structural audit three years ago. The room owner on the first floor Janu Dhamane lived with his wife and son. Dhamane’s son Ayush was in the hall and his mother in the kitchen when the incident took place. No renovation and alteration work was going on in the flat at the time of the collapse. However, a few years back they had carried out some renovations.”

Since it was Monday the salon had just one customer so a major tragedy was averted.

Injured Parth’s father Nilesh Patekar said, “Parth had gone to salon to take a haircut as per school teacher’s demand. While the hair stylist was cutting his hair, the slab collapsed and the duo managed to escape with a few injuries.”

Few locals also rushed to the spot to pull out those trapped under the debris. “We heard a big sound and ran outside to see the building covered in dust. I found Aayush trapped in the debris. He was conscious, and I along with help of a others, pulled him out from the debris and took him to a nearby private hospital. He has suffered injuries to his hands, leg and waist,” a shopkeeper from the neighbourhood Rahul Patil said.