Kolkata flyover collapse: Rescuers sift through rubble at collapse site

Kolkata: Motionless bodies, body parts smeared in blood, scattered iron girdles and concrete slabs of collapsed part of an under-construction flyover were at the site teeming with hundreds of policemen, rescue workers, Armymen, a couple of hours after the tragedy.

Scattered shoes, slippers, water bottles, broken glass panes, hand bags were seen all over the busy Vivekananda Road and Tagore Street crossing spot, called the Ganesh Talkies area, as the security personnel and rescuers were sifting through the rubble in search of survivors.

The collapse caused at least 18 deaths and over 78 injuries, till now.

Narrating the sequences, a roadside fruit seller Amzad Hussain said the incident took place at around 12.10 PM.

"It appeared that the whole sky came down. The sound was deafening and the whole area was trembling. Initially I thought it was an earthquake. In fact, seeing people running helter skelter I ran away from my shop and as I found a massive dust swirling in air, I realised that the bridge has collapsed," Amaz said.

It was the locals who rushed to the spot and started the initial rescue work before informing police and fire office.

Teams of policemen, state disaster management teams, CRPF, CRP, Armymen poured in as locals climbed upon the rubbles in an attempt to rescue survivors at the scene, where multiple vehicles including cars, auto rickshaw were crushed and trapped under the bridge.

Kins, family members were hysterically moving around with printouts of parents and asking policemen whether they have been spotted from the underneath the collapsed portion of the bridge in the central part of the city.

Ajay Kondai and his wife Sarita Kondai, of the nearby Natunbazar Rajbari locality were passing by the area when the mishap happened, their relative Asit Kondai said.