June 07, Mumbai
This shocking incident took place at around 1.30 AM on Monday when a five-story pucca house in Razzak Chali in front of Behrampada Golden Bakery in Bandra East collapsed on five more houses. One person, Riaz Ahmed Mustakim (28) died on the spot, while Nurul Haq Haider Ali Syed (21), Salman Atik Khan (24), Rahul Mohan Khot (22), Rohan Mohan Khot (20), and Lata Mohan Khot (48) were injured.
Some of the injured are undergoing treatment at Bhabha and VN Desai Hospitals in Bandra, while Lata Khot was hit in the head and was rushed to KEM Hospital. Raees, who lives in Razzak Chali in Bandra East, had started building the fifth floor of his four-story old house in the last few days for the sake of money. He started the work by mounting an iron angle on the fourth floor, without giving any support to the old four-story house. The erection of the iron girdles of the fifth floor was almost complete.
There was a loud noise at midnight on Sunday when the housekeeping contractor, as well as the artisan, went home after work as usual. A five-story house in Chincholya Street collapsed on five adjoining houses, tearing down the walls and triggering a single uproar. Hearing a loud noise, the neighbor woke up. He immediately rushed to the house and contacted the control room. MLA Jishan Siddhiki, local police, and fire brigade rushed to the spot. Until then, a young man named Maqsood Khan, who lived in the area, risked his life and with the help of the fire brigade, immediately pulled out the wounded found in a mound of mud in a nearby house. Meanwhile, locals rushed the injured to a nearby hospital. In the darkness of the night, the fire brigade launched a rescue operation on the battlefield, as some people were likely to be trapped under the mound.
The work was suspended for some time due to the interruption of rains. The accident happened as the four-story old house could not bear the load of the iron angle on the fifth floor. Luckily the owner had vacated four floors of the house before doing the housework. Otherwise, a big accident would have happened. Maqsood Khan said no one in the nearby house was missing. With the onset of monsoons, the collapse of houses has caused panic among the people.
Rescue operation started. Police assistance has been increased at the spot and the power supply has been cut off. Chincholi street, in the darkness of the night, the occasional rain showers were causing a big difficulty in the relief work.
Municipal Corporation employees had been called for help. The rescue operation was underway with the help of locals as the mound is large. The help of locals has been taken to get out the people trapped under the pile and ambulance service had been kept ready. The local MLA Jishan Siddhiki was stationed at the spot and Mumbai Police Commissioner visited and inspected the spot.
