Six-storey residential building collapses in Surat; rescue operations underway

Officials and others during a rescue operation after a building collapse in Surat. Pic/ PTI

A six-storey residential building collapsed in Surat's Pal area on Saturday afternoon, with at least four to five people trapped under the rubble, reported PTI citing officials.

As per the report, a woman was rescued alive from the debris. A search and rescue operation is currently underway with the help of NDRF and SDRF. According to local people, four to five persons might have been still trapped, said Surat district collector Sourabh Pardhi.

"A six-storey building collapsed during the afternoon in the Pal area of the city. We learned that four to five flats were occupied in the building. One woman has been rescued. Four to five people are still feared trapped. Search and rescue operations are ongoing with the help of NDRF and SDRF. We hope that the operation will end in a couple of hours," said Pardhi.

Surat Police Commissioner Anupam Singh Gehlot, who arrived at the scene to oversee the rescue operation, confirmed that the voices of trapped persons were heard at the beginning of the rescue efforts, said the PTI report.

"When rescue work started, we heard voices of those who were trapped inside. We rescued a woman alive from the rubble and sent her to the hospital. We suspect that nearly five people are still trapped inside," stated Gehlot.

He said the building was constructed in 2016-17. As per the report, around five flats in the building, were occupied, mostly by those who work in factories in this area, he added.

Mumbai: Second tree collapse death in two days

Even though the city has yet to experience heavy showers, incidents of tree collapses have already begun. A 57-year-old rag picker, Varsha Mestry, died after a banyan tree fell on her on Tuesday morning. The incident took place near the S T depot on Sayani Road in Parel. A BMC official stated that the tree had been trimmed at night because the road is always busy and the footpath is encroached upon by various structures.

On the intervening night between Monday and Tuesday, there were high-speed winds. Eyewitnesses reported that several branches fell and the tree uprooted in the morning. Mestry was likely picking garbage or sitting when the incident occurred. She was taken to KEM Hospital, where she was pronounced dead.

"Even though there isn't sufficient rain, the water table of the soil has increased due to intermittent splashes. The trees that are already vulnerable due to not getting enough scope to expand their roots get uprooted. This particular tree is 30 years old," said a BMC official. In a similar on July 1, Amit Jagtap, a 45-year-old man on a scooter died after trees fell on him in Worli. The incident happened in the PWD (Public Works Department) area near the BDD Chawls.