Three people, including two children, died after a five-storey residential building collapsed in Delhi's Seemapuri area on Wednesday afternoon, while 8 people have suffered injuries. The rescue operation is being carried out jointly by the Delhi Fire Services (DFS) and the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF).
The deceased include a 21-year-old woman, Gulafsa, who was around four months pregnant, and two children—a 12-year-old girl and another child whose identity is yet to be ascertained.
Eight injured people have been rescued and shifted to Rajiv Gandhi Super Speciality Hospital in Tahirpur for treatment. One of the injured is a toddler, while the other seven are adults. They have been identified as Momin Mirja, 56; Abdul Rehman, 28; Devruddin, 28; Salma, 50; Chote, 34; Sakina, 35; and Samad, 30.
The building, constructed on a plot of approximately 25 square yards, collapsed and partially damaged two adjoining buildings.
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The Delhi Fire Service (DFS) received a call about the building collapse at around 3:30 pm and rushed four fire tenders to the spot.
{{/usCountry}}The Delhi Fire Service (DFS) received a call about the building collapse at around 3:30 pm and rushed four fire tenders to the spot.
{{/usCountry}}Track Delhi building collapse LIVE updates
According to people who spoke to Hindustan Times, the building is owned by Mohammed Anwar. His son-in-law, Mohammed Akbar, 33, said the family lived across four floors of the building and that he witnessed the structure collapse.
He said three family members, including his sister-in-law, remained trapped. Anwar's daughter Ameena told HT that an adjoining building had been undergoing demolition for the past five to six days using a machine, which she claimed had affected their house.
Another resident, 30-year-old Sameena, told HT that her 21-year-old sister Gulfisha, who is four months pregnant, was trapped under the debris along with her four-year-old daughter. Gulfisha reportedly called from under the debris and said she was having difficulty breathing. "She (Gulfisha) is four months pregnant. Her four-year-old daughter and owner's daughter are with her too. She said she is stuck inside and is facing difficulty breathing".
Ameena also told HT that the family had moved into the building around four months ago after it was newly constructed.
A resident of a street adjacent to the spot said there was a shop on the ground floor, while families lived on the four floors above it.
"Two-three people have been rescued by locals and police, multiple are still trapped," said Kulsum Khatoon.
Pankaj Luthra, Municipal Councillor from Jhilmil, who reached the spot, said, “We received information that an old building, around 40–50 years old, had collapsed…Four to five people have already been rescued from the debris. The entire police force, MCD and administration are involved in the rescue operation. We are making every possible effort to ensure that no further incident occurs and are doing our best.”.
This comes a month after a boys' PG in Delhi's Satya Niketan collapsed on September 6 while repair work was underway. Seven people were killed and several others were injured in the incident.
Since the Satya Niketan incident, the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) has been conducting enforcement drives against dangerous buildings, unauthorised constructions and violations of the Master Plan of Delhi (MPD) and building bye-laws. According to a ANI report, the civic body carried out demolition drives in several areas on Tuesday, including Old Seemapuri.