Mock drill: portion of school building collapses in S Delhi

After a slight delay, priority victims were rushed to hospitals after first-aid. BSES and municipal officials also reached the spot. The bomb squad also combed the school. The firefighters made sure the victims and the medical team didn't face any more problems. The exercise got over in an hour.

Situation: Portion of a school building collapsed in south Delhi
Time: 12 noon

Response: The Emergency Medical Response team came within minutes and got divided into four teams - three for the three floors and one stationed outside the building - along with fire department personnel and civil defence volunteers.

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After a slight delay, priority victims were rushed to hospitals after first-aid. BSES and municipal officials also reached the spot. The bomb squad also combed the school. The firefighters made sure the victims and the medical team didn't face any more problems. The exercise got over in an hour.

Loopholes: There was pandemonium when officials belonging to different agencies rushed in and most of the representatives got busy in taking notes on the number of casualties or clicking snaps. It took over 15 minutes for the first CATS ambulance to arrive. Three ambulances rushed one "serious" patient each, leaving one victim in the simulated disaster-hit zone. Poor attendance of volunteers also hit the exercise.

Toll: Three dead, four seriously injured and other three "suffered" minor wounds.