New Delhi [India], July 12 : Two persons were killed after a multi-storeyed building collapsed in north-east Delhi's Seelampur area on Saturday morning, officials said.
The deceased have been identified as Matloob (50) and his wife Rabia (46). Their bodies have been recovered from the debris.
Rescue operations are currently underway at the site. Teams from the police, National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), and civil defence are involved in the rescue work.
Meanwhile, Delhi Minister Kapil Mishra said that there have been difficulties in carrying out rescue and relief operations as the streets to the incident site is too narrow. He added that the debris out there could only be removed by hand.
Mishra stated that there are chances that more people are feared trapped under the debris.
"The NDRF team is also present here, but this alley is so narrow that there is no other option but to remove the debris by hand... Carrying out relief work here is very difficult, but we all want the debris to be cleared as soon as possible. There is a fear that some people are trapped in the debris, so we are trying to ensure they can be safely rescued. This is a very tragic incident, and so far, there have been reports of 2 deaths..." the Delhi Minister told reporters.
So far, eight people, including a 14-month-old child, were injured after a multi-storey building collapsed in the Seelampur area of North-East Delhi on Saturday morning.
The injured have been identified as Parvez (32), Naved (19), Siza (21), Deepa (56), Govind (60), Ravi Kashyap (27), Jyoti (27), and a 14-month-old child named Ahmad. All the injured were taken to Jag Pravesh Chandra (JPC) Hospital, except the infant, who was referred to GTB Hospital.
The incident took place at around 7 am in Gali Number 5 of Janata Colony, which falls under the Welcome Police Station's jurisdiction.
Speaking to reporters, Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) for the North-East District, Sandeep Lamba, said seven people had been rescued so far and that 3-4 more were feared trapped under the debris.
"We received a call around 7:30 am about a three-storey building collapse in Gali No 5 in the Welcome area. 7 members of a family who lived here have been rescued. The operation to rescue others is underway. Police, NDRF, civil defence, and locals are working on the spot... 3-4 people are feared trapped... Locals have helped a lot in the rescue operations," Lamba said.
He also said that the building belonged to a person named Matloof and that the building opposite had also sustained damage due to the collapse.
A local resident, Anees Ahmad Ansari, whose house was also damaged in the incident, described the moment it happened. "Everyone was sleeping, when at around 7 am, the building collapsed on one side of my house and its debris crashed into my house. Suddenly, there was a blackout. 4-5 people are still trapped in the debris of the collapsed building. Everyone is involved in the rescue operations."
This incident comes just a day after another building collapsed in the Pul Mithai area near Bara Hindu Rao in North Delhi, killing one person and injuring several others.
That building, located at Tokri Walan in Pul Mithai near Lohia Chowk, had three shops on the ground floor and godowns above. The shops were part of the Azad Market area and mainly sold bags and canvas cloth.