Govandi building collapse: We had done up the house only a few years ago, says resident

Four of family killed as two-storey structure owned by them collapses in Govandi

Shaikh Mohammed Yaseem struggled to hold back his tears as he recounted the tragedy that struck his family on Friday. Yaseem lost four members, including his father, after their two-storey house collapsed at Govandi. Yaseem, whose brother and mother are being treated for injuries, said they had bought the house a few years ago and done it up. Yaseem said he escaped as he had slept in his mobile repair shop.

Onlookers at the site of the collapse in Govandi on Friday. Pics/Sayyed Sameer Abedi

Early in the morning, I was woken up by a call from the neighbours of our family house asking me to come there urgently. I was not told what had happened. Half asleep, I reached home. There was commotion and chaos all around, the house had collapsed completely, and I got the shock of my life to find my father and family members’ bodies. Before I could gather any thoughts and react, the police and medical staff put me in an ambulance asking me to accompany the bodies for formalities,” said a weeping Shaikh Mohammed Yaseem, who lost four members of two generations of his family in an overnight house collapse at Shivaji Nagar in Govandi.

Neighbour Mohammed Javed who accompanied the Shaikh family to hospital on Friday

Four people died and eleven were injured in the tragedy in the early hours of Friday. Yaseem used to spend most of his time at his shop and would visit home for food and other chores. “The two-storey house was bought by the family a few years ago and the entire house came down like a pack of cards, damaging neighbouring houses and injuring neighbours too,” said the 40-year-old, standing outside the trauma centre of Rajawadi Hospital.

Friends and kin of the injured at Rajawadi Hospital in Ghatkopar

‘Brother badly injured’

“We had done up the house. Last night, my entire family was inside and today we have just a handful of survivors. My mom and cousins slept on the first floor, my brother Parvez Shaikh, his wife and another cousin were on the second floor and my dad Mokar Zabir Shaikh was sleeping on the third floor. In the collapse, my dad, two cousins and my brother’s wife died. Parvez, who has a sofa business, has been badly injured as the debris fell on his chest with iron rods hurting his body and my mom has been injured in the leg,” Yaseem told mid-day.

Neighbour Mohammed Javed who accompanied the family said that there were some repairs going on in the house and the heavy rain in the past few days might have triggered the collapse.  “We have not told the injured people about the death in the family yet. One of their daughters who stays in Delhi is also expected to arrive soon,” he said.

With inputs by Somita Pal

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