Kota (Rajasthan) [India], February 8 : One student was killed, and several others were injured after a building collapsed in Rajasthan's Kota on Saturday night, officials said.
Kota District Magistrate Piyush Samariya said rescue operations are still underway, with teams from the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), and the Fire Department continuing efforts at the site.
"The rescue operation is still underway.... NDRF, SDRF, and the Fire Department are still conducting rescue operations. So far, 10 people have been rescued and taken to the hospital. We are receiving positive updates on most of those rescued... One casualty has been reported," the Kota DM told reporters.
Samariya added that the collapsed structure housed a cafe food outlet and that preliminary findings suggest the incident may be linked to foundation-related issues caused by the dismantling of an adjacent old building.
"It was a cafe food outlet that was operating here. The prima facie case appears to be that an old building next to it was being dismantled and that there were issues with its foundation. We cannot reach a final conclusion yet. The operation is going on with our full efforts and teamwork," the Kota DM added
Rajiv Dutta, the Officer on Special Duty (OSD) to Kota MP and Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, and the district administration rushed to the spot immediately after receiving information about the incident. Rescue operations are ongoing to retrieve people trapped under the debris.
"This is a really unfortunate incident. As soon as the information was received, the entire administration reached here. All efforts are being made to recover the people trapped. 8 people were recovered, but one student was reported dead. The remaining 7 are under treatment. They are stable. 2-3 more people are still feared trapped, all efforts are underway to recover them," OSD Rajiv Dutta told reporters.
Meanwhile, the Chief Medical and Health Officer (CMHO) of Kota, Narendra Nagar, said medical teams are on high alert and closely monitoring the condition of the injured.
"Our team is checking the vitals of every patient coming to the Emergency. They are being shifted to the Medical College and Trauma Hospital. The accurate situation will be known once the debris is cleared. The entire Administration is here. Our teams are here on alert mode. Five people have been shifted so far," Narendra Nagar told reporters.
Further details are awaited.