Mumbai, July 20 (IANS) An 80-year-old woman was killed and at least five others injured when portions of a balcony and slab of a dilapidated old building crashed near Grant Road station, here on Saturday, the BMC Disaster Control said.
The incident happened at around 11 a.m. when a part of the balcony and slab portions of the second and third floor of the Rubinissa Manzil building collapsed, and another part was hanging precariously.
At least 13 terrified residents were stranded on the top floor of the four-storey building and moving swiftly, the Mumbai Fire Brigade along with police, ambulances and civic staffers managed to launch a successful rescue operation, saving all unharmed.
After around an hour, the rescue teams recovered the body of one woman from the debris and five others who were injured, and were rushed to the nearby Bhatia Hospital for treatment.
The deceased victim was identified as Veera Wadia, 80, and the injured are Atul Shah, 55, Niket Shah, 26, Vijay Nishad, 24 (all in Bhatia Hospital) and Siddhesh Palija, 30, whose condition is reported to be critical at the Breach Candy Hospital.
Officials said that the old and shaky structure had been served with a notice a few months ago as being unsafe and the portions that collapsed on Saturday may have been due to lack of maintenance.
This is the current monsoon season’s first major house crash tragedy as torrential rains have clobbered Mumbai and the Mumbai Metropolitan Region in the past 72 hours, with heavy rains lashing the vicinity since Friday-Saturday midnight, and continuing.
–IANS
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