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Ludhiana factory roof collapse witnesses recount horror
It was a normal Monday morning for labourers working at the factories located in Baba Mukand Singh Nagar of Daba, an industrial area of Ludhiana
It was a normal Monday morning for labourers working at the factories located in Baba Mukand Singh Nagar of Daba, an industrial area of Ludhiana. They were engaged in their routine activities when around 9.50am, they heard a loud explosion. Within seconds, the whole area was covered in dust.
“At first, we thought an explosion had taken place,” said Jaspreet Singh, the owner of a factory located next to the four-storeyed auto parts factory, the roof of which collapsed on Monday morning when labourers were trying to lift its ceiling.
“I rushed out and saw the whole area engulfed in dust and a sense of chaos all around,” he added.
Jaspreet, along with the workers and owners of nearby factories, were the first ones to initiate rescue operations before the police and fire department teams reached the spot.
“A few labourers managed to come out of the debris on their own while some were rescued by locals. A few minutes later, the fire brigade and police reached the spot and started shifting the injured to hospitals,” said Jaspreet.
He added that it was fortunate that the factory where the mishap took place was closed for a day or else the casualties would have been higher.
Labourers Ranjit Kumar, Sarwan and Sanjiv Kumar said they work in the factory next to the ill-fated building. After hearing the thud, they rushed out of the factory assuming that something heavy had come crashing down the sky. “When we came out, we heard the labourers trapped in the building crying for help. We rushed to the terrace and rescued some of them,” said Ranjit Kumar.
Sanjiv Kumar said they arranged water for the rescued labourers and informed the police.
Kanwaldeep Singh, son of the owner of an electroplating unit, adjoining the ill-fated factory stated that there was some damage to their building following the mishap. “Five of our labourers were present in the factory at the time. Debris of the collapsed roof fell on three of our labourers, including Sagar, 27, Santosh, 32, and Ashok Kumar, 30, leaving them injured,” he said, adding, Sagar died after reaching hospital, while Santosh is undergoing treatment at SPS Hospital, where his condition is stated to be critical.
The driver of a pick-up auto, which was parked nearby, was also injured as some of the debris fell on him. He received 24 stitches on his head.
Kin wait anxiously for loved ones to be rescued
As rescue operations continued around them, kin of the labourers feared to be trapped under the debris of the roof collapse site, grew more and more anxious with each passing minute.
Refusing to leave till their loved ones were rescued, the kin stayed put at the spot, their eyes glued to the remains of the building.
For many, the bad news came early. Mohammad Akram, brother of one the victims identified as Mustkeen, said, “I wanted my brother to work with me near Jalandhar bypass as it is close to our home. He had been working with the contractor, Mohammad Harun, for the last three months. On Sunday night, when we were having dinner, Harun came to take my brother for work.”
“He had told us that he had got a new contract. They were going to the lift the roof of a building. I tried to stop my brother, as I felt it was a risky task, but the contractor forced him to go along,” said Akram.
He added, “If I had managed to convince my brother to skip this contract, his life would have been saved.”
Hailing from Araria of Bihar, Mustkeen is survived by his wife, a daughter and two sons.
Shamsil was one of the lucky ones. His brother Arzool was rescued by afternoon. “I had come to know about the incident around 10am. When I reached the spot, rescue operations were going on. Around afternoon, I came to know that the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) teams had rescued my brother,” he said.
